HC sets aside EC order against ex-Maha CM Chavan

The Delhi High Court today set aside the Election Commission's order holding former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan guilty of filing incorrect expenses for the 2009 Assembly elections.

The EC in its July 13 order had also issued a show cause notice to Chavan seeking his response within 20 days on why he be not disqualified for the same.

"Election Commission's July 13, 2014, order is set aside," Justice Suresh Kait said.

The poll panel, in its order, had given Chavan, an MP from Nanded parliamentary seat, a 20-day deadline to respond to the show cause notice which was issued after it found him guilty of failing to "lodge his account of election expenses in the manner required by the(Representation of the People) Act and Rules."

In its show cause notice, the poll panel had asked Chavan why he should not be disqualified for failing to give his true and correct expenses incurred in last Assembly polls.

But the high court had on July 28 stayed the Commission's show cause notice to Chavan.

Earlier, former Law Minister and senior advocate Kapil Sibal, who also represented Chavan, had contended that his client had filed all the correct poll expenses and had incurred an expenditure of Rs 6.85 lakh in the 2009 Assembly elections.

Chavan had won the 2009 Assembly polls from Bhokar in Maharashtra's Nanded Lok Sabha constituency. He won the recent Lok Sabha polls from Nanded.