Supreme Court Refuses Relief To Meenakshi Natarajan, Says Election Disputes Must Follow Statutory Route

The Supreme Court on Friday declined to grant relief to Congress leader Meenakshi Natarajan in her challenge against the rejection of her Rajya Sabha nomination papers, emphasizing that election-related disputes must be addressed through the mechanisms provided under election law rather than through direct petitions before the apex court. The ruling came during the hearing of Natarajan’s plea challenging the decision of the Returning Officer (RO), who had rejected her nomination for the Rajya Sabha election in Madhya Pradesh. Court Questions Direct Challenge To Returning Officer's Decision During the proceedings, the Supreme Court examined whether it could intervene after the nomination process had already advanced. The bench asked Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for Natarajan, to point to any precedent where the Supreme Court had overturned a Returning Officer’s decision and restored a nomination after the election process had commenced. Congress Argues Charges Were Never Framed Appearing for the Congress leader, Singhvi contended that the basis for rejection was legally flawed. He submitted that although a criminal case was pending, charges had not been framed against Natarajan. According to him, framing of charges is a crucial requirement under the Representation of the People Act before such a ground can be used to reject a candidate's nomination. The Congress leader argued that the Returning Officer had incorrectly applied the law while scrutinizing her nomination papers.