Clean mess if you want election results declared: Delhi High Court to DUSU candidates

The counting for the DUSU polls, which was halted by the Delhi High Court over defacement of public property by candidates, will be held only after October 21 when the Court will hear the matter next, according to officials.

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday asked the candidates of Delhi University Students' Union (DUSU) and college elections to clean all campus structures defaced during the polls if they wanted vote count to take place.

The high court, which had on September 26 halted the counting of votes and declaration of results of DUSU and college elections, said its purpose was only to send a message that such violations would not be tolerated and not to thwart the election process.

"Why don't you clean up the mess? The day the place is cleaned up, we will allow the counting of votes the very next day," a bench of Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela said.

"Every day in the city, some crisis or the other is happening. There is dengue, malaria. It's all because we are littering the place. And this (election) is a festival of democracy, it is not supposed to be a festival of money laundering," the court further said.

The court was hearing an application filed by two candidates who contested the college elections in two separate DU colleges, seeking declaration of results.

The counsel for the two candidates submitted that they would ensure the premises of Law Centre II and Ramjas College, where they are studying, are cleaned up and re-painted in coordination with the varsity.

The application was filed in a pending petition seeking action against the DUSU candidates and student outfits involved in damaging, defacing, soiling or destroying the beauty of public walls.

Petitioner Prashant Manchanda, a practising advocate, said the erring candidates and their parties be directed to remove the defacement and refurbish the areas and make efforts to beautify the destroyed portions.

The court granted time to the candidates, petitioner, MCD, and DMRC to file their status reports and listed the matter for October 21.

The court had on September 26 halted the counting of votes of DUSU and college elections till all the defacement material, including posters, hoarding and graffiti, is removed and restoration done.

It had said the election may proceed but the counting of votes will not take place till the court is satisfied that defacement of property has been removed.

The polling was held on September 27 and the counting of votes was to be done on September 28.

During the hearing, the court asked the two candidates, who were present in court, to remove all the posters and stickers and to get the place cleaned up. It asked them to urge other students also to remove the material and re-paint the damaged places.

"What are you people doing? What are you becoming? If you are a bona fide candidate, clean it up. You are the leader, people will follow you. We don't want to withhold the results. You have spent so much money on this election, you can afford to get that place repainted," the bench said.

It also asked the candidates to produce the photographs of the restored areas on the next date of hearing.

When the defending counsel claimed that the students were not involved in defacement activities, the court asked them to convince the "rich candidates, who were campaigning in luxurious cars, to spend some money on re-painting the damaged portions." "People were spending so much money. How the posters and stickers were being thrown over there in the air. I have not even seen this in a general election. What is happening is the student election," the bench said.

"You as candidates must correct the system. You are the leader. You will tell the other followers of yours that please don't do this, please clean up the university. The university is going to be saddled with a huge bill. Who will pay this bill?" it added.