The Delhi Court sought response of AAP government, police and Election Commission on Tuesday on a petition challenging a Rs 10,000 challan issued to an auto driver for displaying “I love Kejriwal” message on his three-wheeler.
The lawyer for the Delhi government and police told the court that time was required to examine why the challan for Rs 10,000 was issued and said a status report would be filed.
However, the counsel for Election Commission said the action was probably taken for violation of the model code of conduct (MCC). During the MCC period, political advertisements are prohibited.
A notice was issued by Justice Navin Chawla to the Delhi government, police and the Election Commission. The plea by the auto driver claimed the action stemmed from ‘political malice’.
On Election Commission’s MCC claim, the auto driver’s lawyer contended that firstly it was not a political advertisement and even if it was, it would not be prohibited as it was displayed at the petitioner’s expense and not by a political party.
The model code of conduct does not talk of political advertisement out of an individual’s own funds, he said.
The auto driver’s lawyer also said that political advertisements were permitted on the rear, right and left sides of public service vehicles, including autos, under guidelines regarding this issued by the Delhi government in 2018.
The court asked them to file their respective replies before the next date of hearing on March 3.
The auto driver had displayed ‘I love Kejriwal’ and ‘sirf Kejriwal’ messages on his auto. It was claimed that the action was taken without any advance notice by any government prohibiting such a display.
The petitioner also claimed that the auto driver was ‘illegally’ challaned under various provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act for allegedly violating the conditions of his permit to operate an auto.