SC rejects poll panel plea to vacate stay on Katol bypoll

Nagpur: The Supreme Court on Monday rejected Election Commission’s special leave petition seeking respite from the stay imposed by Nagpur bench of Bombay high court on holding bypoll for Katol assembly constituency on April 11.
The EC had declared schedule for simultaneous polls along with those for Lok Sabha. The SC decision forced the EC to withdraw its petition clearing the way for hearing in the PIL filed by a farmer Sandeep Sarode in the HC on Tuesday.

On March 19, the HC had issued notice to the EC giving it two weeks to file reply before staying the Katol bypoll. Even as EC filed its reply, the last date for filing nominations was over on March 25. This means, tenure for the Katol seat, which fell vacant after resignation of BJP MLA Ashish Deshmukh, would be cut short in case bypolls are held. Major politicals have already expressed their reservations against holding the polls calling its “ill-timed”.

In its reply, the commission denied the claim that should the byelection be held now as proposed, the tenure of the elected candidate would be not more than three months. “It is factually incorrect and legally untenable,” it said.

Opposing the petitioners’ argument, the EC stated that the period of Maharashtra assembly determines on October 18, 2019. “Thus, the remainder of the term of the member in relation to the vacancy in question is more than a year. Section 151A of Representation of Peoples Act does not mean that no byelection can be held where the remainder of the term of the vacancy is for less than one year. A byelection may be held even where the vacancy is for less than a year in certain contingencies,” its reply states.

The commission also submitted that in some cases, bypolls have been held where the vacancy was for less than one year and in certain cases even for less than six months.

Countering the petitioner, the EC placed before the court that great prejudice would be caused if this constituency remains unrepresented even for a single day. “The petitioner himself stated that the territorial area of Katol constituency is declared as drought-affected. It will be necessary in such a situation to hold byelections as problems faced by common man will be voiced by the elected representative for the constituency,” it reads.

Ripping apart the petitioner’s allegations of non-application of mind in declaring the bypolls, the EC said, “It is blatantly incorrect. The commission is a constitutional body of prime importance and in its long experience /expertise of more than six decades in the field of elections has understood in the right spirit the law of elections,” it said.

Neerja Choubey is the counsel for EC while petitioner is represented by Shreerang Bhandarkar and Nidhi Dayani.