SC places Sringeri recount result in abeyance, restores Congress leader as MLA for now

The Supreme Court on Monday provided interim relief to Congress leader T.D. Raje Gowda by allowing him to continue as MLA of the Sringeri Assembly Constituency in Karnataka for the time being.

Mr. Raje Gowda had appealed to the Supreme Court after a recount of postal ballots, following a High Court order that showed the numbers lean in favour of his rival, D.N. Jeevaraj, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate.

A Bench headed by Justice Sanjay Kumar ordered status quo ante while issuing notice to Mr. Jeevaraj and other respondents. The court listed the case for further hearing on May 21.

In his petition, Mr. Raje Gowda, represented by senior advocates Kapil Sibal, Devadatt Kamat, and advocate Tushar Giri, argued that he was the “duly elected” Member of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly from the Sringeri constituency.

The petition said he had been declared as the returned candidate by a margin of 201 votes, with 279 postal ballots rejected, in the 2023 Assembly election. Mr. Jeevaraj had challenged the results in an election petition filed in the High Court.

Mr. Raje Gowda argued that the High Court had only allowed the election petition “in part”, directing the “re-verification of the 279 rejected postal ballots and recounting of all postal ballots”.

This had brought his victory in the polls under a cloud despite there being “categorical findings rendered in his favour on every allegation of corrupt practice levelled against him”, the Congress leader said.

The petition criticised the Returning Officer for pursuing a “completely illegal, arbitrary and unconstitutional exercise by conducting a de-novo or fresh reconsideration and re-verification of even the valid postal ballots received in favour of Mr. Raje Gowda”. This was when the re-verification was only ordered to be limited to the rejected 279 postal ballots.

“There was neither any objection nor any pleading or discussion whatsoever in the entire order [of the High Court] regarding the validity of the 562 valid postal ballots cast in favour of the appellant (Mr. Raje Gowda),” the petition submitted.

The Returning Officer had deducted 255 postal votes cast in favour of Mr. Raje Gowda from out of the 569 postal votes earlier counted in his favour, and two postal votes had been deducted from the earlier 692 postal votes polled for Mr. Jeevaraj.

The court said that prima facie these actions exceeded the scope of what had been ordered by the High Court.

“As such steps are prima facie without a foundation, we are of the opinion that interference is required by this court… All steps taken in pursuance of the exercise undertaken by the Returning Officer shall remain in abeyance till the appeal is decided. Such order requires restoration of status quo ante and steps shall be taken to affect the same,” the apex court ordered.

Mr. Jeevaraj has already taken oath as MLA from the Karnataka Assembly Speaker U. T. Khader as the certificate of victory was given to him by the Returning Officer. The ruling Congress, led by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, took serious exception to Mr. Jeevaraj being declared victorious, and alleged foul play. The Opposition BJP has maintained that the recounting process had been conducted in a fair and transparent manner.