Shiv Sena moves Bombay HC against ex-Mumbai mayor Kishori Pednekar over 'false' nomination form

Mumbai: A Shiv Sena spokesperson on Monday moved the Bombay High Court, challenging rival Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate and former city mayor Kishori Pednekar's civic poll nomination for allegedly suppressing details about FIRs lodged against her.

Susie Shah, the spokesperson of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena, mentioned the plea before a bench of Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam Ankhad seeking an urgent hearing.

The court, however, refused, noting that only a few days were left for the civic elections, scheduled on January 15, and said the petition would be taken up for hearing after the polls.

Pednekar has submitted her nomination form to contest the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections from ward 199 (central Mumbai).

Shah, in her plea, filed through lawyer Kalpesh Joshi, sought a direction from the HC to the Returning Officer to declare Pednekar's form as illegal, invalid and improper and to reject it.

As per the petition, Pednekar, in her affidavit, deliberately hid and suppressed important facts such as several FIRs registered against her for serious offences.

The plea claimed multiple cases are pending against Pednekar, including one of alleged fraud committed during the Covid-19 pandemic.

"Pednekar has hidden details about the five FIRs filed against her in various police stations across Mumbai during her tenure as the mayor of Mumbai," the petition said.

Pednekar has grossly misused the electoral process by submitting a "false and misleading" nomination form and affidavit, and hence she has no moral right to contest the elections, it claimed.