The Hindu : New Delhi News : High Court refuses to stay DU Students’ Union polls

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Sep 07, 2007
ePaper

New Delhi

New Delhi

High Court refuses to stay DU Students’ Union polls

Staff Reporter

It would create more confusion, says court

SFI had sought a stay saying that nomination papers of several candidates were rejected
The Court has issued notice to the University for September 17

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Thursday refused to stay the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) elections slated for Friday and give more time to the students to file fresh nomination papers, saying it would create more confusion.

Justice Ravinder Bhatt passed the directions on a petition by the Students’ Federation of India (SFI) seeking a stay on the elections on the grounds that the nomination papers of several candidates in different colleges were rejected due to the fresh scrutiny conducted on a direction by the Court resulting in several elected posts going uncontested.

However, the Court issued a notice to the University for September 17.

The High Court last month had directed the University and its affiliated colleges to implement the Lyngdoh Committee recommendations approved by the Supreme Court on the model code of conduct for the elections.

Mr. Justice Bhatt had passed the direction on a petition by Vikas Dahiya, an Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (AVBP) leader whose nomination papers for the post of DUSU president were rejected citing a code that bars candidates from contesting if he or she had not cleared his or her papers in the preceding year.

The Court had asked the University to carry out a fresh scrutiny of the nomination papers of the candidates in accordance with the recommendations. It had also made it clear that in case of any discrepancy between the University’s model code of conduct and the recommendations, the recommendations shall prevail.

A Division Bench of the Court had subsequently dismissed another petition by Dahiya seeking a direction to the University to keep certain provisions of the model code of conduct in abeyance for this year’s elections. He had sought the relief on the ground that the provisions had been made part of the model code only this month with the intention to extend political benefits to certain students. Dismissing the petition, the Bench had said that “the apex court’s approval of the Lyngdoh Committee recommendations on the code is a law”.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail