It is not necessary for candidates to disclose every detail of their property, a big decision of the Supreme Court
The Supreme Court on Tuesday made a big comment regarding the disclosure of assets of the candidates contesting the elections. The court said that a candidate contesting elections is not required to disclose all the properties owned by him. The candidate needs to disclose only those significant assets so that the voters can understand his financial condition and lifestyle. The court said that candidates contesting elections have the right to privacy and they do not need to disclose every detail of their assets. The apex court gave this verdict in the case of an independent MLA from Arunachal Pradesh.
High Court had invalidated the election of independent MLA
In fact, the Gauhati High Court had declared the election of independent Arunachal Pradesh MLA Karikhon Cree invalid. Karikho Cree had won from Tezu assembly seat of Arunachal as an independent candidate on 23 May 2019. He did not mention three vehicles in the name of his wife and son in his declaration of assets in his election affidavit. After this the matter reached Gauhati High Court and his election was declared invalid.
No need to give details of every movable property
The Supreme Court said that candidates and their family members are not required to give details of every movable property unless it is very valuable or luxurious. The division bench of Justice Anuruddha Bose and Justice Sanjay Kumar rejected the decision of the Gauhati High Court. The court said that the vehicles mentioned in the petition were either gifted or sold before the elections. In such a situation, this vehicle is no longer in the ownership of the Karikho Cree family.
The Supreme Court said that not disclosing the vehicles does not have any significant impact on the election results. Assets which give information to the voter about the lifestyle or affluence of the candidate must be disclosed. It is not necessary that the candidate declares every item of movable property like shoes, stationery, clothes, furniture etc.
