The Himachal Pradesh High Court has issued a notice to BJP Rajya Sabha member Harsh Mahajan on the petition of Congress candidate Abhishek Manu Singhvi – a noted Supreme Court lawyer, who had lost the election despite the Congress having majority in HP Vidhan Sabha after cross voting by six Congress MLAs, on February 27.
A single bench of the High Court headed by Justice Ajay Mohan Goel issued the notice to Harsh Mahajan, who had won the election by a draw after both candidates polled equal votes.
The counsel for Singhvi, Neeraj Gupta said, “Mr. Singhvi had challenged the election process by determining the winner by draw of lots, disputing the rule which dictates the winner by drawing lots when candidates receive an equal number of votes”
He said, “The assumption underlying this rule, where the candidate whose slip is drawn is declared the loser, is legally incorrect”.
After filing the petition Singhvi had said, “It defies common sense, old tradition and practices, anywhere and everywhere in the world that whenever there is a tie between two people, the person whose name is drawn…should be the winner and not the loser”; If our contentions are accepted ultimately by the High Court, the result declared would have to be declared to be wrong.” he added.
