Delhi HC refuses to stay DUSU poll count | Latest news Delhi

The Delhi high court on Monday refused to set aside its earlier order barring the counting of votes in the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) elections until the public disfigurement caused during the campaign electoral floor was completely cleaned.

A bench of Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela refused to vacate the stay, after counsel for the two candidates who were running for the post of vice-president of Campus Law Centre-2 and secretary of Ramjas College urge the court to allow the recount. , with the reason that students’ interests are affected.

Expressing displeasure at the manner of the disfigurement and heavy campaign spending, the court said it wanted to send a message that its spending “could go down the drain.”

“Unless and until the whole place is cleaned, we are not ordering the count. These people (candidates) need to realize that their spending can also be lost. Please clean it. If they are going to be led for people who are doing what they are doing, they are people who are not in the front but in the back, we can’t help it, I’m very sorry. If they can bring a tractor, JCB, they can use all this to campaign, they can also clean .The leaders cannot be these people who have spent this money. These (candidates who have incurred huge expenses) seem to be the predominant ones. Tomorrow, if they clear, the results will be announced,” the bench told the lawyer which compares the two candidates.

The court was responding to a petition filed by advocate Prashant Manchanda seeking action against potential candidates involved in the defacement. On September 26, the court allowed DU to proceed to the polls on September 27, but stopped the counting of votes, with a declaration that it would be done only after the disturbed public property was restored.

While the bench acceded to the university’s plea to go ahead with the polls, it asked the university to pay the expenses incurred by the civic agencies, including the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and the Railway Corporation of Delhi. Delhi Metro (DMRC), to clear the dilapidated properties.

On October 9, the court asked the candidates who went to the polls to clean the defacement, saying it would allow counting of votes the next day, if public property is restored.

In its October 19 status report, submitted through advocate Mohinder JS Rupal, the university said that more than 90% of the colleges/departments/institutions/centres have made their campus free from distortion. The university’s four-page status report also added that it has set up two sub-committees to coordinate with colleges on the status of demotion in their respective institutions and assess the expenditure incurred. He also stated that the DUSU election committee had issued a notice/notice to the prospective candidates, advising them to remove the defacement done on public and private properties and comply with the high court’s orders.

However, lawyers for MCD and DMRC said that DU should be asked to pay or deposit ₹1 crore on account of expenses incurred by MCD in clearing blighted properties.

During the hearing, Manchanda, however, disputed DU’s stand regarding the removal of the defacement and recorded several videos and photos, alleging that posters and graffiti had not been removed. He further claimed that the candidates, during the campaign, used unnumbered vehicles, JCBs and tractors, which obstructed national highways.

Taking cognizance of the claim, the court reprimanded the university for not taking action against candidates resorting to hooliganism and using unnumbered vehicles and warned that it would pass a “word order” if the university’s vice-chancellor allowed them to do it The university, the court said, was unwilling to act, adding that there was an administrative failure on its part.

“This message must be sent to them. The university must do something. They showed you this video. The candidates are disrupting the national highway, if it does not even go through the municipal election, it is a university election. Create an impact you are being insensitive can we allow the students to go rogue on the roads.the whole society can’t be let down please. bring it to the notice of the vice-chancellor (VC), otherwise we will pass a word order. What is their participation? It seems that there is no remorse, if they were so clean in their hearts come,” said the bench in defense of Mohinder JS Rupal, who appeared for the university.

He added, “The university must act, if the university does not act, what will happen? There is no will for the decisions to be (implemented). Please bring it to the notice of the VC that it is not a situation happy. It’s an administrative failure and you have to take corrective action. If you clean it up, we’re no one to stop it.”

Accordingly, the court issued a notice to the candidates, including Raunak Khatri, Aman Kapasiya, Aryan Mann, Rahul Jhansla, Rishabh Chaudhary, Rishiraj Singh, who carried gross disfigurement, to explain their conduct and fixed 28 October as the next hearing date.