New Delhi:
The playing of a video that went viral during the Chandigarh mayoral polls brought some comic relief in the Supreme Court today amid heated debates and strong observations by a bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud. Ta.
The video, which had previously drawn strong remarks from the Chief Justice, was played in court today after the court examined ballots declared invalid during the January 30 election. As the video played, the presiding judge quipped, “Let everyone watch the video. A little entertainment is good for everyone!” He also said the petitioners had already identified the relevant parts of the video and there was no need to play the entire clip. “Otherwise we'll all be here until 5:45,” he laughed.
Earlier, the chief justice was seen on camera pulling out Anil Masi, who had returned for the election, and marking the ballot papers after voting. Masi had declared eight votes in support of the AAP mayoral candidate invalid. This ensured victory for the BJP candidate even though the party received fewer votes than AAP and Congress combined. The Supreme Court has signaled it may pull up police officers, count invalidated votes as valid and order a recount of the votes. If things continue like this, there is a high possibility that the election results will be overturned.
The Supreme Court's remarks came after three AAP legislators switched to the BJP. This means that the BJP will have an advantage over the AAP-Congress alliance in case of re-election. The court also noted that horse racing was in serious trouble after the switch.
Yesterday, the Chief Justice slammed the poll worker and questioned his actions on camera. Masi later claimed that some of the ballots were tainted and invalidated. This afternoon, the court examined the ballots and said they were not defaced. It claimed Mr Masi had misled the court. Earlier, the chief justice had said poll workers should be charged with tampering with ballots.
