New Delhi: Following the verdict of the Supreme Court on the Chandigarh mayoral polls, Congress on Tuesday said the Supreme Court's decision on the farcical election for the mayor's post in Chandigarh will go a long way to save Indian democracy. Congress further lauded the verdict, saying, "The entire election process was a complete farce, which has been duly exposed with this historic verdict."
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge remarked that the "institutional sabotage in the Chandigarh mayoral poll is only the tip of the iceberg in Modi-Shah's devious conspiracy to trample democracy."
"All Indians must fight this onslaught on our Constitution, collectively. Never forget. Our democracy shall be at the crossroads in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections," he said in a post on X.
Training guns at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the top court's verdict, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi remarked, Masih (the returning officer for the poll) is just a 'pawn' in the BJP's conspiracy to murder democracy, behind which is the 'face' of Modi.
Congress general secretary K C Venugopal took to social media and posted on X, "The Hon’ble Supreme Court’s decision on the farcical election for the Chandigarh Mayor will go a long way to save Indian democracy. The entire election process was a complete farce, which has been duly exposed with this historic verdict!"
"For 4 months, we have been frequently seeking time from the Election Commission to discuss the issue of complete VVPAT counting, but it has not found any time for us so far.We hope the ECI moves swiftly and takes steps that will improve the people's faith in the democratic process -- not dent it", he added.
Supreme Court Orders Recount Of Votes
In a significant ruling, the Supreme Court announced on Tuesday that it would order a recount of the votes cast in the contentious Chandigarh mayoral election. This decision comes after considering eight ballots that were initially declared invalid by the returning officer. Additionally, the court has directed the prosecution of the returning officer, Anil Masih, for misdemeanour, reported PTI.
The verdict was delivered by a bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra in response to a petition filed by the defeated Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate, Kuldeep Kumar. Kumar alleged electoral malpractices against the returning officer. The Supreme Court meticulously examined the ballot papers and reviewed video recordings presented by a judicial officer appointed by the registrar general of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, as per PTI.
Earlier, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) secured victory over the AAP-Congress alliance candidate. This win came amidst controversy as the returning officer invalidated eight votes cast for the coalition, prompting accusations of ballot tampering. Manoj Sonkar of the BJP clinched the mayoral post with 16 votes, surpassing his opponent, Kumar, who received 12 votes. Despite Sonkar's subsequent resignation, three AAP councillors later defected to the BJP.