The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected a fresh plea of former Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel challenging a high court order refusing to frame a preliminary issue on the maintainability of a poll petition filed against his election from Patan assembly constituency in 2023.
The top court on September 28 had declined to interfere with the former chief minister's challenge to the election petition of BJP leader Vijay Baghel against his 2023 election.
On Tuesday, a bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana expressed displeasure over attempts to delay the trial, emphasising that election petitions must be decided within a reasonable timeframe.
"Let the trial proceed. You are delaying as much as possible. You will have a decision," Justice Mohana told senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Vivek Tankha, who appeared for the former chief minister.
Sibal said the Chhattisgarh High Court erred in holding that no preliminary issue arose for adjudication. He said the court should either decide the question of limitation as a preliminary issue or refrain from ruling that no such issue existed.
"There are two prayers. One is to decide the preliminary issue, or don't say there is no issue. It is said (by the HC) that there is no issue," Sibal said.
Refusing to allow the submissions, Justice Mohana said limitation involved mixed questions of fact and law and questioned why the objection had not been raised earlier. "You could have pleaded this earlier," she said, adding that an issue could not be framed without a proper basis.
The CJI also questioned why Baghel had not sought an amendment to his written statement to incorporate the relevant objections. "Somebody should have advised you to amend the written statement," the CJI said.
Observing that election disputes required time-bound adjudication, Justice Bagchi said that entertaining the plea could lead to further applications and delay the proceedings. "This is another aspect of delaying the trial. Once we allow this, then you will pray for amendment. Election cases should have time-bound disposal," he said.
Sibal said Baghel would not file any application for amendment and urged the bench that his statement be recorded.
The bench said it had refrained from imposing costs on the petitioner owing to the persuasion of senior counsel.
"Dismissing the plea. We are upholding the High Court order," the CJI said.
BJP leader Vijay Baghel had filed the petition, challenging Bhupesh Baghel's election from the Patan constituency in the 2023 Chhattisgarh assembly elections.
Vijay Baghel alleged that the former chief minister violated the mandatory 48-hour silence period preceding polling by taking out a procession in the constituency. He has sought annulment of Bhupesh Baghel's election.
A key objection raised by the former chief minister concerns the statutory 45-day limitation period prescribed under Section 81 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951.
During an earlier hearing on September 28, Sibal had argued that the election petition was barred by limitation and ought to have been rejected at the threshold.
Referring to the affidavit filed by Vijay Baghel, Sibal pointed out that it bore the date January 22, 2024, whereas the 45-day period from the declaration of the election result had expired on January 17, 2024.
"How will the election petition proceed when the affidavit is not filed in time? The affidavit has to be filed in time," Sibal had said.
The bench had observed that the correctness and legal implications of the dates would have to be established on the basis of evidence. It had also questioned why the limitation objection had not been raised earlier.
(With inputs from PTI)