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The petition states that it was alleged that during an election campaign on 2 May 2014 for the Lok Sabha elections, Kejriwal passed some sentences which amounted to committing an offense under Section 125 of the Act. (image/pti file)
In the FIR, Kejriwal has been charged with an offense under Section 125 of the People’s Representation Act 1951, which relates to promoting class enmity in connection with elections.
The Supreme Court on Monday extended its temporary stay of proceedings against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in a case brought against him for allegedly making objectionable remarks against the Bharatiya Janata Party and Congress in Uttar Pradesh during the 2014 Lok Sabha poll campaign. Allahabad High School which refused to remove him in the pending criminal case before a primary court in Sultanpur.
In the FIR, Kejriwal was charged with an offense under Section 125 of the People’s Representation Act 1951, which relates to promoting class enmity in connection with elections. The panel of judges AS Bopanna and MM Sundresh adjourned the case after noting that there had been a request for an adjournment by one of the parties.
“It is temporary to continue,” the bench said. Kejriwal allegedly said, Joh Congress ko vote dega, mera maanna hoga, desh ke saath gaddari hogi…. Joh Bhajapa (BJP) ko votes dega use Khuda bhi maaf nahin karega (Those who will vote for Congress will betray the nation, God will not forgive those who will vote for BJP). In the petition filed in the High Court, Kejriwal said the petition raises some important questions in the law, including whether a case can be filed under Section 125 of the Act without any video or full transcript of the alleged speech given by the accused.
The petition states that it was alleged that during an election campaign on 2 May 2014 for the Lok Sabha elections, Kejriwal passed some sentences which amounted to committing an offense under Section 125 of the Act. Two days after the alleged remarks by the AAP leader, the petition said, a complaint was filed in the matter.
Although said complaint alleges only a violation of the Model Code of Conduct, the police instead recorded the FIR the same day under Section 125 RP Act. This was done without any independent investigation by the police. This clearly shows “partisanship and action taken after haste” by the police, the petition states. The petition states that in the case of the petitioner there is no proof or evidence that he in fact made such alleged utterances and, therefore, the basic evidence essential to prosecuting him is absent in this matter.
She added that the mere mention of God cannot be tantamount to provoking hostility and hatred between the various groups of citizens. “The alleged utterance by the petitioner does not refer to any particular caste or religion, and therefore, in no way can such alleged utterance lead to feelings of enmity or hatred between different classes of citizens,” he said.
The petition said that Kejriwal did not refer to any religion or sect but only a political party and a political party which could not be considered a class of citizens for the purposes of Section 125 of the Act.
(This story was not edited by the News18 staff and was published from a syndicated news agency feed – PTI)
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