Chandigarh mayoral polls: No interim relief; HC issues notices to UT admin, presiding officer

Chandigarh, Jan 31 (PTI) The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Wednesday refused to grant any interim relief on the AAP's petition seeking fresh mayoral polls, and asked the Chandigarh administration to give their response within three weeks.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has sought the setting aside of Tuesday's election, alleging tampering of ballot papers, and fresh elections under the supervision of a retired High Court judge.

The BJP had swept Chandigarh mayoral polls, retaining all three posts, in a setback to the Congress-AAP alliance which has alleged tampering with ballot papers by the presiding officer.

The division bench of Justices Sudhir Singh and Harsh Bunger on Wednesday issued notices to the Chandigarh administration, the municipal corporation, presiding officer Anil Masih and newly elected mayor Manoj Sonkar, among others, to file their replies within three weeks.

The matter was adjourned till February 26.

The petition was filed by AAP councillor Kuldeep Kumar, who was the candidate for the mayor's post, against the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation and the Chandigarh administration, among others.

Speaking to reporters after the hearing, UT Chandigarh administration senior standing counsel Anil Mehta said the court refused to give any interim relief to the petitioner.

"We have been given a three-week time to file a response and we will do so," said Mehta. He added that the issue regarding the maintainability of the petition was still pending The petitioner's counsel Gurminder Singh said the court issued notices and gave three weeks to respondents to file their replies.

"Our prayer's ambit was that the mayoral poll result be set aside and free and fair elections be held," said Singh who is also the Punjab Advocate General.

In the plea, the petitioner sought directions for holding fresh elections in a free and fair manner under the supervision of a retired judge of the high court to ensure that "no malpractice" is done.

According to the plea, the petition was filed as the "election was not held in a free and fair manner and there was a gross violation while counting of votes, with tampering of the ballot papers and then declaring them invalid, in the favour of BJP and against the alliance of AAP and Congress." The petitioner has sought an investigation by an independent investigation agency into the "entire fraud" committed during the election process.

The petitioner sought directions to respondents to seal, preserve and present before the HC the entire process of the election, including the record of ballot papers and proceedings of the election process and videography done on Tuesday, according to the plea.

The petitioner also sought directions to restrain the newly elected mayor from discharging the functions of mayor of the Chandigarh municipal corporation as the entire process of election was "vitiated by fraud." The Congress and the AAP had predicted an easy victory in the 35-member House of the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation, projecting it as an early test for the INDIA bloc. But the BJP retained all three top posts for which elections were held.

Opposition councillors alleged tampering with the ballot papers by presiding officer Anil Masih, a charge rejected by him and the BJP. PTI