The Supreme Court announced its verdict on Tuesday, declaring Kuldeep Kumar, the Aam Aadmi Party's candidate, as the winner of the Chandigarh mayoral election. This decision came after the court invalidated eight votes that were earlier declared as invalid by the returning officer, Anil Masih. The court directed Kumar to be elected as mayor with a total of 20 votes.
Previously, Manoj Sonkar of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had won the mayor's post by securing 16 votes against Kumar's 12 votes. However, Sonkar resigned later, and three AAP councillors switched to the BJP. The Supreme Court focused on rectifying the errors in the vote counting process rather than overturning the entire electoral procedure.
The apex court initiated perjury proceedings against Anil Masih under Section 340 of the Criminal Procedure Code. Masih had claimed that he marked eight ballots as invalid due to defacement, but the court found this claim to be false. Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud criticized Masih during the hearing for his statement, pointing out inconsistencies in his testimony. Masih had previously stated that the ballots were defaced, but upon examination, it was found that they were not defaced until after the poll results were announced.
During the proceedings, Chief Justice Chandrachud questioned Masih's justification for marking the ballots, given that they were not defaced at the time. The court emphasized the importance of maintaining transparency and integrity in the electoral process, especially regarding the handling of ballots. The decision to uphold Kumar's victory underscores the significance of adhering to fair and lawful procedures in elections.
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