The Delhi High Court on Monday highlighted numerous errors in a petition filed by AAP leader Somnath Bharti, challenging BJP MP Bansuri Swaraj’s election victory in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. The petition cited alleged corrupt practices but was marred by typographical and referencing errors, prompting the court to request a re-filing.
Justice Manmeet PS Arora, who reviewed the initial filing, noted that the document contained several typographical mistakes, complicating the comprehension of its claims. Additionally, there was a mismatch between the respondents named in the petition and those listed in the accompanying memo of parties and synopsis.
In response to these issues, the court has given Bharti a 10-day window to submit a corrected version of the petition. The case has been scheduled for further hearing on August 14. During the session, when Bharti’s counsel requested the court to issue notices to the respondents, Justice Arora expressed his inability to proceed under the current circumstances, stressing the need for a clearer and more accurate petition.
The electoral contest in question saw both Bharti and Swaraj vying for the New Delhi Lok Sabha seat, with Swaraj securing 4,53,185 votes to Bharti’s 3,74,815, according to the official results.
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Bharti’s petition, grounded in Sections 80 and 81 of the Representation of the People Act, accuses Swaraj, her election agent, and other associates of engaging in corrupt practices. It also alleges that former AAP minister Raaj Kumar Anand, who briefly ran under the Bahujan Samaj Party banner purportedly to dilute Bharti’s vote base, joined BJP shortly after the election, further complicating the political dynamics.
