MUMBAI, APRIL 11: The Bombay High Court on Monday dismissed a chamber summons against an election petition challenging the election of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) member Kashinath Kuthwad from the Bhor constituency in the Pune district for the last state elections.Kuthwad had filed a chamber summons challenging the maintainability of the petition filed by Anantrao Thopte, Congress candidate and former minister for the State, alleging that the cause of action was not disclosed in the petition and that the main provisions of such petitions under the Representation of Peoples' Act, 1951 were not followed. In the event, the petitioner argued that the election petition could not be maintained and deserved to be summarily rejected.Thopte has in his election petition challenged the election of Kuthwad who won by a margin of 8074 votes, alleging that the election was won by publicly defaming him with false allegations made by NCP leader, Sharad Pawar. In his petition, Thopte has given the dates and venues of two public meetings held on September 8, 1999 at Bholawade and Velhe in the same district where Pawar cast aspersions on his character and pamphlets were even distributed at the site carrying the same allegations. In his petition, he has given the names of his workers who were there at the meetings, and who later conveyed to him the allegations made against him.However, in his petition against Thopte's petition, Kuthwad argued before Justice R M Lodha yesterday that there are discrepancies in the affirmation clauses in the affidavits given in support to the petition, and that none of these affidavits disclose the cause of action for the petition.Justice Lodha while dismissing the chamber summons noted that though the affidavits in support may be lacking in certain quarters, they could always be cured in a later stage. He noted that the main petition in any case clearly lays down the reasons for the filing of the petition and gives details of the meeting.Pawar had allegedly claimed that when he was in the state government, despite giving money and all support to the Raigad Cooperative Sugar Factory, Thopte, who was the chairman of the factory used it to further himself and get arrogant. He also alleged that when he was the defence minister, he had given Rs 25 lakh to the Raireshwar temple in the Bhor district, (where Shivaji had taken a vow to set up his kingdom), but the money, Pawar allegedly claimed had been misappropriated by Thopte's family.The election petition is now to be heard by the bench of Justice Lodha to the third week of June ``for framing charges''.
