HC rejects Congress MLA's application to dismiss poll petition

RAIPUR: Chhattisgarh high court has rejected an application moved by Congress MLA Devendra Yadav for dismissal of an election petition filed by former Vidhan Sabha Speaker, BJP's Prem Prakash Pandey.
Yadav was elected for a second time from Bhilai assembly constituency in the 2023 election by defeating Pandey in a close contest -- 1,264 votes.
In Jan 2024, Pandey, a former state minister, moved high court through counsels Shailendra Shukla and Debashish Tiwari, challenging Yadav's election.
The petition alleges that Yadav concealed his criminal history in the affidavit filed before Election Commission.
In response, Yadav filed an application seeking to dismiss the election petition on technical grounds.
Pandey's petition referred to a criminal case in Raipur, but during the hearing of the election petition, it was revealed that the Congress MLA was declared an 'absconder' in a criminal case pending in Bilaspur judicial magistrate first-class court under IPC sections 127 (receiving property taken in the commission of offences) and 147 (cheating).
Yadav also faces a bailable warrant in a case in a Raipur court for alleged offences under IPC sections 186 (obstructing a govt servant from duty), 332 (voluntarily causing harm to a public worker), 427 (causing loss or damage), and 147 (cheating). On these grounds, Justice Rakesh Mohan Pandey on Friday rejected the Congress MLA's application seeking dismissal of Pandey's election petition.