SC sets aside Kerala HC judgement cancelling election of A Raja as MLA

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday set aside a judgement of the Kerala High Court which cancelled election of CPI(M) leader A Raja from Devikulam Assembly seat in Idukki district.

A bench of Justices Ahsanuddin Amanullah and Prashant Kumar Mishra allowed the appeal filed by Raja against the March 23, 2023 order of the high court.

"The impugned judgment rendered by the high court is set aside and the election petition stands dismissed. The appellant is entitled to all consequential benefits as a member of the legislative assembly for the entire period," the bench said.

The top court on September 26 last year had reserved its judgement on Raja's plea.

Congress leader D Kumar, who was the runner-up in the 2021 Assembly polls, has alleged that Raja was not qualified to contest the Devikulam seat reserved for the Scheduled Caste (SC) community.

A bench comprising Justices Abhay S Oka, Ahsanuddin Amanullah and Augustine George Masih heard submissions from senior advocates V Giri and Narender Hooda appearing for Raja and Kumar respectively.

The top court was hearing a plea filed by Raja against the March 20, 2023 order of the Kerala High Court.

Raja, opposing the plea, had contended that he belonged to the Hindu Parayan community in relation to the state of Kerala and the caste certificate issued by Tahsildar, Devikulam proved the same.

He had also contended that the Returning Officer rightly rejected the objection by Kumar to the nomination paper filed by him.

The CPI(M) leader also claimed that his parents had never converted to Christianity, he was never baptised, his wife was a Hindu and that his marriage was according to Hindu rites which included lighting of a customary lamp and tying of 'thali' around his wife's neck.

In his plea, Kumar had alleged that Raja was a Christian, baptised at a CSI church in the hill district, and submitted a fake certificate to prove that he belongs to an SC community.

Kumar, who was defeated by a margin of 7,848 votes in the 2021 polls by Raja, had also claimed that even the wife of the CPI(M) leader was a Christian and they were married in accordance with Christian religious rites.

Agreeing with the contentions of the Congress leader, the high court had said it was well evident from the evasive answers given by Raja regarding his marriage and the ceremony that there was a "conscious effort" on his part to conceal the truth.

The dress worn by him and his wife are indications of a Christian marriage, the court had noted.

The court had also said that all the documents placed before him "would sufficiently show that the respondent (Raja) was actually professing Christianity at the time when he had submitted his nomination and converted to Christianity long before its submission".

"As such, after the conversion, he cannot claim to be a member of Hindu religion. On that score also, the Returning Officer ought to have rejected his nomination," the court had said.

It had also held that there was "utter failure" on the part of the CPI(M) leader to show and prove that his predecessors (grandparents) migrated to Kerala prior to promulgation of the 1950 order by the President of India by which Hindu Parayans in Kerala were declared as a part of SC community.

"In short, on both the grounds, it is clear that the respondent is not a member of 'Hindu Parayan' within the state of Kerala and not qualified to be chosen to fill a seat -- the Devikulam Constituency -- in the Legislative Assembly which is reserved for a Scheduled Caste, the court had said.

"...hence the election of respondent (Raja) as the returned (elected) candidate for the said Constituency in the year 2021 is declared void under Section 98 of Representation of People Act, 1951.

"There is no claim for the petitioner (Kumar) for declaring him as the returned candidate from the said Constituency, hence, no such issue was taken up for consideration," it had said.