HC notice to AAP, EC over forgery

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court has sought responses from the Election Commission and Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal on a plea seeking derecognition of the party for allegedly filing forged documents at the time of registration as a political party.

Issuing the notice to Kejriwal and six of his party members, Justice Manmohan directed them to file their response within four weeks. The high court also asked the Election Commission of India to file a counter affidavit within four weeks. Rejoinder affidavit from the petitioner, if any, is to be filed before the next date of hearing, it said.

WHETHER OR NOT THE AAP HAS INDEED COMMITTED FRAUD AND FORGERY WHILE SUBMITTING THE MANDATORY 100 AFFIDAVITS OF FOUNDING MEMBERS THE TIME OF ITS REGISTRATION...

THE PETITIONER

The court notice came on a plea filed by Janraajya Party, an unrecognised political party, which sought directions to the election commission to decide the issue of “whether or not the AAP has indeed committed fraud and forgery while submitting the mandatory 100 affidavits of founding members to the poll panel at the time of its registration”.

The petition said that the election commission, instead of taking any action, informed the Janraajya Party that since the matter involved a criminal offence of forgery, it would not initiate any action until the police completes its investigation.The plea sought necessary direction to the station house officer (SHO) of the police station concerned to register an FIR against the accused persons for criminal conspiracy, cheating and using forged documents. It has said that the petitioner party had filed a complaint before the poll panel on August 19, 2013 but the election commission has been delaying the matter without giving any plausible reasons.