Meenakshi Natarajan Rajya Sabha Nomination: Why was Meenakshi Natarajan’s form rejected, what is the way forward now? know the law

The Congress delegation met the Election Commission on Wednesday regarding the cancellation of Meenakshi Natarajan’s nomination by the Returning Officer. Although no position has been clarified by the Commission yet, Congress leader Vivek Tankha, who is also a Supreme Court lawyer, is hopeful that the Commission will give a decision in his favor under Article 324. If this does not happen then Congress will approach the court.

In fact, in Form-26 of Rajya Sabha nomination, Meenakshi Natarajan did not give information about the pending case in Telangana and the Returning Officer in Madhya Pradesh canceled her nomination. On this, Congress says that according to the election law, it is necessary to disclose only those cases in which charges have been framed and there is a provision of punishment of more than 2 years.

Congress also claims that the magistrate has not yet taken cognizance of the crime in this case. Therefore, this case does not legally fall under the category of criminal case. It is noteworthy that the issue of curbing criminalization in politics was debated on several occasions in Parliament. The Supreme Court tightened the election rules and directed their strict compliance. Then somewhere the era of giving correct, complete and accurate information in the affidavit during nomination was born.

What information about cases has to be given in Form-26?

It is mandatory for the contesting candidates to give complete details of all their criminal cases (in the form of an affidavit) through Form 26 at the time of nomination. As per the strict instructions of the Supreme Court and the Election Commission, no column in Form 26 can be left blank, if no case is registered then the candidate has to clearly write Nil or Not Applicable.

Key information related to criminal cases has to be given

• Pending Criminal Cases: Details of all currently pending cases against the candidate have to be given.
• Conviction: If the candidate has been convicted in any case, then complete information has to be given.
• Court and case details: The name of the court, case number or FIR number and relevant sections related to any pending case have to be mentioned.
• Brief description of the crime: The situation and brief information of the crime committed has to be given.
• Appeal information: If any appeal is pending in the High Court against conviction in a criminal case, details of the same have to be given.

Supreme Court instructions

The Supreme Court had given instructions in the decisions given in the cases of Public Interest Foundation vs. Union of India and Lok Prahari vs. Union of India to make mandatory declaration of criminal background, property and educational qualification by the candidates in Form-26 during nomination. On the basis of these decisions, the Election Commission had modified Form-26, in which the following major guidelines have been given-

1. Disclosure of criminal cases: It is mandatory for the candidates to give full details of criminal cases pending against them and any conviction.
2. Do not leave any column blank: The Supreme Court had clarified that no column in Form 26 should be left blank. If any information is not applicable then it is necessary to write zero or not applicable in it.
3. Protection against cancellation of nomination: If any information in the affidavit is found to be incomplete, the Returning Officer will give notice to the candidate to submit a new and complete Form 26 before the date of scrutiny. If information is suppressed then the Returning Officer can cancel the nomination.
4. public information: Candidates with criminal records are required to give wide publicity about their cases through newspapers and electronic media.

When does nomination get cancelled?

1. Hiding important information or giving wrong information in Form-26 during enrolment: (such as criminal cases, assets, liabilities or educational qualifications) is a violation of the Election Commission rules. If such cases are detected by the Returning Officer during scrutiny of nomination, the candidature may be cancelled.
2. Hiding information about criminal cases is a gross violation: If the candidate has any criminal case pending against him or has been convicted in any case, and he does not mention the same in Form 26, the nomination will be canceled after scrutiny by the Returning Officer.
3. Hiding details of assets and income: Providing incomplete or suppressed information regarding movable, immovable property or liabilities of the candidate, his/her spouse and dependents may render the nomination invalid. Hiding PAN details and information from previous years’ income tax returns also makes Form 26 incomplete.

Leaving column blank in Form 26

As per the directions of the Supreme Court, if a candidate leaves the main columns of Form 26 blank then the Returning Officer can give him a chance to complete it. If the candidate does not submit the complete affidavit by filling in all the columns by the prescribed deadline (before the nomination scrutiny begins), the nomination is rejected.

false affidavit

• legal action: After the nomination is accepted, if any other person or organization makes a written complaint with evidence that the information concealed in Form 26 is false, then the Returning Officer can file a complaint against the candidate directly in the court under Section 125A of the Representation of the People Act.
• Provision of punishment: Giving false information can lead to imprisonment of up to 6 months or fine or both.
• Important information: If the Returning Officer finds any defect in the form, he provides the candidate an opportunity to provide clarification or file a revised affidavit. However, in case of deliberate suppression of material facts (like pending criminal case) the nomination is sure to be cancelled.