After the Supreme Court upheld the validity of AAP candidate Kuldeep Kumar's election as Chandigarh mayor, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) launched a scathing attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), branding it as "corrupt, fraud, and cheat". Speaking at a press conference, Senior AAP leader and Delhi minister Saurabh Bharadwaj slammed the BJP, the world's biggest political party, for engaging in such actions.
"The biggest political party of the world, BJP was seen doing malpractices - on camera - in a mayoral election. This is a matter of concern for the country. What would the party be doing where there is no camera and no microphone? How can you trust the Central Government at all those places? Supreme Court has exposed the Central Government in this matter...Central Government's topmost advocate represented the Presiding Officer before the Supreme Court," the Delhi minister said.
AAP Chandigarh president Sunny Ahluwalia responded to the verdict, stating that the apex court acknowledged the incorrect declaration of eight votes as invalid.
Masih Sirf 'Mohra' Hai, Peeche Modi Ka 'Chehra' Hai: Rahul Gandhi After SC Verdict
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also reacted to the SC verdict, saying "Loktantra ki hatya ki bhajpayi saajish mein Masih sirf 'Mohra' hai, peeche Modi ka 'Chehra' hai".
Congress leader Sachin Pilot, responding to the verdict, said, "I welcome the SC judgement. We should see that the authority and credibility of institutions like the Election Commission is undermined, it doesn't argue well for a democracy. I am surprised that it took the SC to intervene and set the record straight. It should set an example of the future functioning of the EC".
Chandigarh Congress president said that the apex court had shown that 'nyay' is still alive in the country. "Our workers were very disappointed. Eight of our votes were declared invalid by presiding officer Anil Masih who was appointed by the BJP. This is a historic day for Chandigarh," he told reporters.
The Chief Justice of India (CJI) also mentioned that the eight votes, initially declared invalid by the presiding officer, would now be considered valid.
The Supreme Court annulled the results of the Chandigarh mayoral poll, declaring AAP councillor Kuldeep Kumar as the winner. The court noted that there is a legitimate case for initiating proceedings under Section 340 CrPC against Anil Masih, the Returning Officer for the Chandigarh Mayor poll. The Registrar Judicial was directed to issue a notice to Masih, prompting him to show cause as to why actions should not be taken against him.
The Supreme Court ordered that the eight votes, initially treated as invalid, were indeed validly passed in favour of AAP candidate Kuldeep Kumar. The court stated, "Counting the eight votes for him will make him have 20 votes." The Supreme Court conclusively directed the quashing of the election result declared by the presiding officer.