SC Refuses To Stay NOTA In Gujarat RS Election:- The notification of the Election Commission to introduce the “None of the Above” (NOTA) option for the coming Rajya Sabha elections in Gujarat has been refused to stay by the Supreme Court on Thursday.
A bench of Justice Dipak Misra, Justice Amitava Roy and Justice A.M. Khanwilkar issued a notice to the poll panel for September 13 to examine the constitutional validity of the notification.
“Why did you (petitioner) move the court so late? When it suited you, you did not come. You come here on eve of elections,” said the bench.
The Rajya Sabha poll in Gujarat will be held on August 8. SC said the result of the upcoming RS poll would be declared as per schedule and sought EC’s response on plea filed by Gujarat Congress chief whip Shailesh Manubhai Parmar.
Parmae, moved the court seeking quashing of the August 1 circular introducing NOTA for the August 8 election.
On Tuesday, the Election Commission was approached by the Congress against the use of NOTA option in the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections. It claimed that it was violative of the Constitution and electoral laws. But it was not a new direction and was introduced in 2014, maintained the poll panel.
On Wednesday, the SC had agreed to hear a petition moved by the Gujarat Congress challenging the decision to use None of the Above (NOTA) option in the upcoming Rajya Sabha polls in the state.
SUPRAJA
