Court adjourns hearing on plea on Narendra Modi's poll affidavit

Ahmedabad: Gujarat government on Saturday sought more time from a local court to file its response on an application by an Aam Aadmi Party worker seeking registration of an FIR against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for allegedly hiding his marital status in his affidavit filed during the 2012 Assembly elections.

Additional Sessions Judge G N Rana adjourned the hearing till October 1 as the state government sought time to file reply to the application challenging an order of a magisterial court, which had dismissed an earlier plea seeking registration of FIR against Modi in the case.

The court had, on August 21, issued notice to the Gujarat government in connection with the latest plea of an Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) member Nishant Verma.

The magisterial court had dismissed his earlier application on the grounds of the delay of one year.

However, the court had then said that the alleged offence was committed under section 125(A)(3) of Representation of People (RP) Act by not disclosing facts by Modi's marital status.

The RP Act 125-A (3), deals with penalty for concealing information while filing affidavit. It had the provision of serving imprisonment for a term of which may extend to six months.

The court had further said, as per Criminal Procedure Code (CRPC) section 468 (2) (B) the complaint for the offence should have been given in a time of one year for cases related to the violation of section 125 (A) (3) of the RP Act.

Verma's advocate K R Koshti had earlier submitted that the order of Ahmedabad rural court should be quashed as the demand to file an FIR was made within time.

The AAP activist had approached the court in April this year as Ranip police station in the city had declined to register an FIR against Modi.

He had also sought action against the Returning Officer of Maninagar assembly seat, P K Jedeja, for accepting the affidavit from Modi who had contested the election from the same constituency in 2012.

Modi disclosed his marital status and the name of his wife as Jashodaben for the first time in his affidavit accompanying the nomination for Vadodara Lok Sabha seat this year.

Earlier, when he had contested Gujarat assembly polls in 2012, he had left the column on information about the spouse blank.