The Delhi High Court has recently dismissed the plea challenging the election of Meenakshi Lekhi, the Union Minister of State for External Affairs & Culture, from the New Delhi constituency in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The petition was filed by Ramesh, who contested the elections as an independent candidate in 2019. A single judge bench of Justice Sanjeev Narula in its order rejected the petitioner’s, Ramesh, challenge to Lekhi’s election. The petitioner made allegations that, Meenakshi Lekhi, exceeded the prescribed election expenditure limit. However, the court noted that the basis for this claim was unclear and lacked substantiation. The court observed that throughout the petition, the primary argument seemed to be that the respondent had reduced the official expenditure related to electoral activities. There was a clear absence of specific details that highlights discrepancies between the declared amount and the alleged actual expenditure. Furthermore, the court stated that the petitioner’s claims appeared to be based more on assumptions and allegations rather than solid evidence. The court concluded that the petitioner’s claims lack concrete substantiation and rely more on conjecture and assumptions. During the hearing presented by Meenakshi Lekhi’s legal team, comprised of Harish Pandey and Anshuman Tiwari, they argued that the allegations made in the petition were broad and lacked clarity. They also highlighted the absence of sufficient evidence or documents supporting claims of corrupt electoral practices.
