Supreme Court
Kolhapur : Supreme Court on Friday set aside a Bombay high court order that had declared BJP MLA Gopichand Padalkar ineligible to contest the upcoming Sangli District Central Cooperative (DCC) Bank election, paving the way for his participation in the Nov 1 poll. You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Kolhapur | Silver Rate in Kolhapur | Bank Holidays in Kolhapur | Public Holidays in Kolhapur Stay updated with the latest Kolhapur news.
“The high court exceeded its jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution by recording a conclusive finding on Padalkar’s eligibility,” the apex court noted while allowing his appeal and restoring his candidature. The court had held that Padalkar failed to establish that he fulfilled DCC Bank’s eligibility criteria of being a member of a cooperative society for at least two years and a director for one year. HC had also observed that the returning officer had failed in his duty by allowing an allegedly ineligible candidate to enter the electoral fray. A Supreme Court bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi, however, disagreed with HC’s approach, observing that the issue of eligibility was a disputed question requiring evidence and a full hearing by all parties. The court, however, left the door open for further legal scrutiny, stating that any aggrieved party might challenge Padalkar’s election through an election petition if he was elected, where the question of eligibility could be examined in detail. Padalkar’s nomination had been challenged by former Congress MLA Vikramsinh Sawant and private person Sujay Shinde, who separately approached HC after the returning officer declared him eligible to contest. Advocate Anand Landge represented Padalkar before Supreme Court, while advocate Sandeep Deshmukh appeared for Sawant. Download the TOI App.
Earlier, Bombay HC’s Kolhapur bench, led by Justice Shailesh Brahme, had quashed the returning officer’s decision to accept Padalkar’s nomination.