The Kerala High Court sought the response of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on an election petition challenging her victory in the November 2024 Wayanad Lok Sabha by-elections.
The single-judge Bench of Justice K Babu on Tuesday issued summons to Gandhi and listed the matter for further hearing in August.
The petition was filed by Navya Haridas, the BJP candidate during the bypolls, who finished third behind CPI’s Sathyan Mokeri. Gandhi won the November 13, 2024 bypolls with a margin of over five lakh votes.
Haridas alleged in her plea that Gandhi failed to disclose several immovable properties owned by her and her husband, Robert Vadra, along with investments and movable assets held in Vadra’s name. The omissions constituted suppression of material facts and violated mandatory disclosure norms under the Representation of the People Act, 1951, noted the petitioner.
She further claimed that Gandhi misled voters through such suppression, thereby influencing the electoral outcome through corrupt practices, as defined under Section 123 of the Act.