The Delhi High Court has rejected a petition challenging the election of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Durgesh Pathak from the Rajinder Nagar constituency in the 2022 assembly bypolls. Justice Mini Pushkarna ruled on February 4 that the failure to maintain proper accounts by a winning candidate does not constitute a corrupt practice or affect the election results.
The petition against MLA Pathak alleged that he had falsified expense details in his daily expenditure register, claiming discrepancies in the reported costs of refreshments, hoardings, banners, pamphlets, and campaign paraphernalia. The petitioner, Ramesh Kumar Khatri, sought to have Pathak’s election declared null and void and to bar him from contesting in assembly elections for the next six years under the Representation of People (RP) Act.
However, the court found that even if the allegations of improper account maintenance were proven, they would not amount to a corrupt practice as defined by the Supreme Court. Citing precedents, the court emphasized that such a failure does not impact the overall election results or fall within the scope of corrupt practices outlined in Sections 77(1) and 77(2) of the RP Act.
Justice Pushkarna’s verdict stated, “There is no averment in the election petition that Pathak has spent over the prescribed limit or that the election result was materially affected by the failure to give true and correct accounts of the expenditure.” The court concluded that the only allegations pertained to improper maintenance of accounts, which, according to the apex court’s rulings, do not constitute a corrupt practice.
