AAP candidate Narinder Singh Shergill to stay in fray: HC

The Punjab and Haryana high court on Thursday set aside the election commission order barring Aam Aadmi Party’s Anandpur Sahib candidate Narinder Singh Shergill from contesting polls for three years and asked the returning officer to accept his nomination papers.

The high court bench of justice Daya Chaudhary and justice Sudhir Mittal passéd the order after a late-evening hearing. “The high court has quashed the decision of the election commission to disqualify him (Shergill) and told authorities concerned to accept his papers. The detailed order is awaited,” said senior advocate Akshay Bhan, who represented Shergill.

Earlier in the day, Rupnagar deputy commissioner-cum-returning officer Sumeet Jarangal had rejected Shergill’s nomination. “Shergill was given time till 3 pm on Thursday to submit any proof against his disqualification or show relief, if any, from the court. But he failed to do so,” he said.

Jarangal however, accepted the papers of Shergill’s father and former Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee member Bhajan Singh Shergill, who was AAP leader’s covering candidate.

Shergill had contested the assembly election from Mohali in 2017. However, due to an alleged delay in submitting details of his election expenses to the EC, the latter disqualified him from contesting any elections from June 7, 2018 to June 7, 2021.

Shergill had filed an appeal against the disqualification with the EC on March 29 this year. The appeal, however, was dismissed on April 30 following which Shergill moved the HC, arguing that the order was passed by the EC against the laid down rules.

The HC had then asked the election commission to carry out scrutiny of his nomination provisionally. The process of scrutiny of papers was put on hold by the returning officer on Tuesday and resumed on Thursday. The high court has now set aside both the EC orders — Shergill’s disqualification and dismissal of his appeal.