Ajit Karn
The lone judge, P Somarajan, also ordered the deposed lawmaker to stand trial for allegedly fabricating documents. However, the high court also denied Kumar’s request to be declared the victor in the constituency.
Noting that Communist Party of India (Marxist) candidate A Raja is a Christian convert from the scheduled tribe community, which makes him ineligible to contest the seat, the Kerala high court on Monday nullified his 2021 state assembly election victory in the Devikulam (Idukki) assembly constituency.
The high court order was issued after Congress candidate D Kumar challenged Raja’s election in the reserved constituency of Devikulam on the grounds that his caste certificate was “forged.”
The lone judge, P Somarajan, also ordered the deposed lawmaker to stand trial for allegedly fabricating documents. However, the court denied Kumar’s request to be declared the victor in the constituency.
In the 2021 state assembly elections, Raja defeated Kumar of the Congress by a margin of 7,847 ballots in the Devikulam district. During the examination of nomination papers, Kumar raised the issue of alleged “forged documents” by Raja, but the returning officer rejected his claim.
“It is the triumph of truth. “By fielding an outsider, the ruling CPI(M) has insulted the SC/ST community, and he should apologise for forging documents,” said Kumar.
The petitioner submitted the wedding album of Raja and other evidence to support his claim. He also claimed that his wife was a practising Christian, that their marriage took place in a church, and that a cross was engraved on her wedding locket.
Raja argued that he belonged to the Paraya community and was not a Christian.
Raja, who attended the assembly proceedings and heard the verdict, stated that he will submit an appeal against the high court’s decision after consulting with his political party.
The Left Democratic Front (LDF) are left with 98 members in the 140-member House following Raja’s disqualification. The CPM chose Raja in the last election after sidelining three-time legislator S Rajendran, who was subsequently denied a seat.
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In 1957, CPI lawmaker Rosamma Punnoos became the nation’s first MLA to lose her seat as a result of a court order in the same constituency where the election was cancelled for the first time. The following year, she was re-elected from the same district with a larger margin.
