Governor, not EC, can nullify my election: MP minister Narottam Mishra over

The Election Commission banned senior Madhya Pradesh minister Narottam Mishra from contesting elections for three years for allegedly using paid news to fan his assembly election campaign in 2008

Updated on: Jun 26, 2017, 24:25:25 IST

Hindustan Times, Bhopal | By Neeraj Santoshi

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Madhya Pradesh minister Narottam Mishra, who was disqualified by the Election Commission of India (ECI) for three years from contesting polls for allegedly filing wrong accounts of election expenditure in 2008 assembly elections, on Sunday said EC doesn’t have the power to declare his election null and void. Talking to HT on phone, Mishra said according to his lawyer, the power to declare his election null and void lies with the governor.

MP government spokesperson Narottam Mishra admitted that the cabinet discussed the idea of holding the budget session for the state during its meeting on Tuesday. (Mujeeb Faruqui/HT File Photo)

“When governor gets a copy of the EC order, he will take the opinion of the law department following which he will take a decision on the issue”, he said.

Mishra alleged EC’s order was ‘visangatipoorn’ (anomalous) and the loophole in it will be misused by political rivals in the elections across the country.

“There is no proof that I have paid for the news. This order is based on imagination and possibilities. What this means is that anybody can pay for a news item in your favour and get you trapped. This EC order will have an impact on the politics of our country”, Mishra said.

Meanwhile Awadhesh Pratap Singh, principal secretary Madhya Pradesh Vidhan Sabha secretariat told HT that Mishra had two legal options- he can approach the state high court or appeal before the EC.

Singh said if Mishra doesn’t get relief through these two options, then prima facie it seems he stands disqualified as MLA. “There is some confusion as the order pertains to 2008 elections and he has been re-elected in 2013. Things will be clear once the assembly secretariat receives gazette notification from EC regarding this order within a few days. Then that gazette notification will be sent to the governor, who will take a decision after consultation with the EC. If governor declares his election null and void, then assembly secretariat will have to issue a gazette notification on disqualification and bypoll in the Datia assembly segment”, he said.

The EC order came on Saturday on a complaint by Rajendra Bharti, who had fought the 2008 elections as a BSP candidate, but is now with the Congress. In its order, EC stated that Narottam, Mishra “was complicit in the publication of the impugned paid news as news items and has derived benefit from and taken advantage of the same, without reporting or acknowledging it, and thereby attempting to bypass the rigours of the law”.

Mishra is parliamentary affairs and public relations minister. He is also the spokesperson of the state government.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Neeraj Santoshi
Neeraj Santoshi is the Chief of Bureau for Hindustan Times in Uttarakhand, where he leads the state reporting team while covering government, politics, environment, wildlife, Uttarakhand High Court, and issues shaping the Himalayan region. With more than two decades in journalism across conflict zones, he has covered politically sensitive regions and environmentally fragile landscapes, and focused on stories that combine public interest with in-depth storytelling. An alumnus of Pune University with a Master’s in Communication Studies, he has reported extensively from Jammu & Kashmir (2003-2010), Madhya Pradesh (2010 to 2018 ) and Uttarakhand (Since 2018), covering subjects ranging from insurgency, elections and governance to wildlife conservation, mining, climate change, agriculture, human rights and social justice. He has covered politics and legislative assemblies of both Jammu & Kashmir and Madhya Pradesh over more than a decade. Before taking over as Chief of Bureau in Uttarakhand, he served as Special Correspondent with Hindustan Times in Madhya Pradesh and earlier reported for both Hindustan Times and The Indian Express in Jammu & Kashmir, where he covered state politics, environment and insurgency-related developments. Over the years, his stories have focused on environmental degradation, wildlife, illegal mining, governance and the changing social fabric of Himalayan states and Central India. He is particularly interested in long-form explanatory journalism, and stories that explore the intersection of ecology, conservation, governance and society. Outside the newsroom, Neeraj enjoys reading widely on neuroscience, consciousness studies, Artificial Intelligence and quantum physics, with a special interest in Kashmiri Tantric Shaivist traditions. He is also passionate about wildlife, mountaineering and the Himalayas, interests that continue to inform his reporting and deepen his understanding of the region he covers.Read More

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