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Synopsis

The Allahabad High Court has not yet admitted for hearing the election petition challenging Prime Minister Narendra Modi's victory from the Varanasi seat in the last Lok Sabha elections.

On Friday, September 20, 2024, the bench of Justice Saumitra Dayal Singh pointed out that the petitioner, Vijay Nandan, who contested against PM Modi from Varanasi, did not have a lawyer to represent him and appeared in person. 

Court highlighted that though the present petition had been first presented on September 3, 2024, it had been reported to be beyond time by 19 days.

Court emphasised that though an application had been filed seeking condonation of delay, in the context of the election petition filed, that application itself may not be maintainable.

When court asked the petitioner if he would like to take legal opinion and/or time to look into this aspect, he sought the same. 

Therefore, on the request of the petitioner, court posted the matter on October 18, 2024 at 3:00 p.m.

Vijay Nandan, who hails from Seoni district in Madhya Pradesh, had contested from the Varanasi seat in the last Lok Sabha elections as a candidate of the Janhit Kisan Party. He alleges that his nomination was arbitrarily dismissed, asserting there were no errors in his papers and that the elections in Varanasi were not conducted fairly.

His nomination was rejected after the scrutiny of nomination papers. In his petition, Nandan claims that his candidacy was invalidated due to the influence of Prime Minister Modi. He prays that the court annul Modi's election, order fresh elections for the Varanasi seat, and reinstate his nomination as valid.

Additionally, he seeks appropriate compensation for the rejection of his nomination and calls for strict action against the election officer responsible for dismissing his papers.

Case Title: Vijay Nandan V. Chief Election Commissioner, Election Commission Of India And 3 Others