Gujarat HC rejects poll code breach plea against Modi

AHMEDABAD: The Gujarat High Court today rejected a petition filed by an AAP worker against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for alleged poll code breach relating to taking of a selfie and displaying the BJP symbol lotus after voting in the Lok Sabha poll here in April 2014.

Upholding a lower court order in the matter, Justice J B Pardiwala said "I am not impressed with your submission that the magistrate did not follow proper procedure while dismissing your petition."

"As per my interpretation, the magistrate has the power to reject and it was done in an appropriate manner. So, I hereby reject it (the petition)," Justice Pardiwala said.

The petition was filed by Aam Aadmi Party worker Nishant Verma against the local court verdict which had in May last dismissed his plea seeking legal action against Modi for allegedly breaching the poll code last year.

On April 30, 2014, when the voting was underway in 26 Lok Sabha seats of Gujarat, Modi, the then Prime Ministerial candidate of BJP, had addressed a press conference immediately after he voted in a school at Ranip area of Ahmedabad and displayed his party's symbol lotus, according to the petition.

Modi also took a selfie from his mobile phone while holding a replica of the saffron party's symbol, it said.

Verma had moved the High Court against the order of Chief Judicial Magistrate of Ahmedabad Rural Court S R Sinh who rejected his plea by holding that a probe by the Crime Branch, which had filed a closure report giving a clean chit to Modi in the matter, was just and proper.

During arguments before the HC, K R Koshti, advocate for the petitioner, submitted that the police had investigated the matter in a manner as if it was under the influence of the opponent (Modi) who was then Chief Minister of the state.

Koshti said Modi was conscious that the entire media was there and his showing of party symbol would go as a message to the entire country.