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The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has approached a Delhi court alleging large-scale irregularities and manipulation in the recently held Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) by-election for Ashok Vihar Ward 65, after the party's candidate was initially shown as the winner before the result was allegedly altered in favour of the BJP.
AAP Delhi State President Saurabh Bharadwaj on Friday said that the party's candidate had been declared victorious on the Election Commission's website and application. Still, the result later disappeared and was replaced with the BJP candidate being shown as the winner. Calling the episode "deeply suspicious," Bharadwaj said an election petition was filed in the Rohini Court on Wednesday, which has admitted the plea and issued notices to the Election Commission and the BJP candidate. The matter is scheduled to be heard on December 24. Addressing a press conference, Bharadwaj said the petition raises three key issues. "First, the Election Commission's own website showed AAP as the winner, and later the result was changed without any explanation. This raises serious questions about the transparency of the process," he alleged. The second issue, according to AAP, pertains to violation of the Model Code of Conduct. Bharadwaj accused Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta of distributing free LPG cylinders under the Ujjwala Yojana on the night before polling within 100 metres of a polling station. "Campaigning or inducements of any kind are strictly prohibited in this area, especially on the eve of polling. We had complained to the Election Commission at the time, but no action was taken," he said, adding that the matter has now been included in the court petition. The third allegation concerns the addition of a polling station from neighbouring Ward 64 to Ward 65 in Ashok Vihar. Bharadwaj claimed that when it became evident that AAP was winning a closely contested election, a polling station considered a BJP stronghold was "illegally added" to the ward. "Polling stations are pre-notified and cannot be altered after elections are announced. Adding votes from another ward is against established rules," he alleged. Welcoming the court's decision to issue notices, Bharadwaj said AAP was confident that the truth would emerge through judicial scrutiny. (ANI)
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