Refusing to pass any order on a plea seeking action against the Election Commission's clean chit to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah for allegedly violating the Model Code of Conduct (MCC), the Supreme Court Wednesday disposed of the petition by Congress MP Sushmita Dev and said she could challenge the order in a fresh petition. The court told Dev that as Election Commission has decided the MCC violation complaints by the Congress party against PM Modi and Shah, she could challenge the orders in Election Petition in case of objection, adding that the court cannot "go into the merits of the orders in this petition". “Rightly or wrongly, decision has been made. Challenge it in court,” the bench told Dev while disposing of her plea. Lok Sabha Elections 2019: How to check live counting According to the ADR, "an election petition is a procedure for inquiring into the validity of the election results of Parliamentary or local government elections. In other words, it is a means under law to challenge the election of a candidate in a Parliamentary, Assembly or local election." Election petitions are filed in the High Court of the particular state in which the election was conducted and within 45 days from the date of the declaration of results. The apex court had on Monday asked the Congress MP to bring on record EC's orders giving clean chit to Modi and Shah, after she accused the poll panel of inaction on complaints against the two BJP leaders for allegedly violating the model code of conduct (MCC) with "hate speeches" and using armed forces for "political propaganda" READ | Modi’s ‘obscene’ remarks on Rajiv Gandhi meant to malign image: Congress MP to top court In an affidavit, Dev said that the EC has passed orders in a "cryptic manner without mentioning any reason whatsoever, in stark violation of the law laid down by this court" while disposing of some complaints. Alleging discrimination and arbitrariness on part of the EC, Dev said that the poll panel has initiated action for violation of model code of conduct against Union minister Maneka Gandhi, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, BSP supremo Mayawati and BJP leader Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur for statements which were similar in "tone, tenor, meaning, purport and intention" to Modi and Shah's statements.
