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Delhi High Court on Wednesday dismissed a plea challenging the election of Chirag Paswan, president of Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), from the Hajipur Lok Sabha seat in Bihar.
Justice Amit Bansal's bench ruled that the court lacked territorial jurisdiction, allowing the petitioner to explore other legal remedies. The petitioner alleged she was a survivor of an alleged sexual assault orchestrated by Prince Raj (a relative of Chirag Paswan) and his associates, including Paswan, who failed to disclose this alleged "criminal antecedent" in his nomination affidavit for the elections. She argued that concealing such information violates Section 125A of the Representation of the People Act, which carries a penalty of six months' imprisonment. Advocate Sidhant Kumar, representing the Election Commission, stated that the petition was not maintainable in Delhi as the election took place in Bihar. Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma further argued that only a voter of the constituency or a candidate can file an election petition, and the petitioner did not meet these criteria. Chirag Paswan, an Indian politician and former actor, has been serving as the Minister of Food Processing Industries since June 2024. He has been the founding president of the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) since 2021 and previously held the position of president of the Lok Janshakti Party from 2019 to 2021. Since 2024, he has represented the Hajipur Lok Sabha constituency as a Member of Parliament. Chirag is the son of the late Ram Vilas Paswan, a prominent Union Minister and Member of Parliament. (ANI)
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