Court rejects petition against Narendra Modi over 2012 poll affidavit

AHMEDABAD: A court here today rejected the petition filed by a member of Aam Aadmi Party seeking legal action against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for filing a `defective' affidavit during the 2012 Gujarat Assembly polls.

Judge G N Rana of Ahmedabad district sessions court rejected the plea of Nishant Verma mainly on the ground of delay in the filing of the petition.

The court also noted that Verma, as a voter, resided in satellite constituency while his complaint relates to Maninagar seat.

Modi, who had contested the 2012 Assembly election from Maninagar here, left the column about the spouse blank in his affidavit accompanying the nomination, the petition said.

He disclosed the name of his wife, Jashodaben, for the first time when he filed nomination from Vadodara during last year's Lok Sabha elections, it pointed out.

Verma contended that Modi thus committed an offence under the Representation of People Act by not disclosing facts about his marital status in 2012.

He moved the court in April last year after the Ranip police here refused to register first information report against Modi. He wanted the court to initiate legal action against Modi.