SC pulls up Jan Suraaj Party for seeking annulment of 2025 Bihar assembly polls

THe sublime margaret court on fri declined to think of a plea by the Prashant Kishor-led Jan Suraaj company seeking annulment of the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections, reproaching the party for invoking the judicial forum after having suffered a complete rejection at the polls.A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi refused to examine allegations of large-scale electoral malpractice, including direct cash transfers of ₹10,000 to women voters during the imposition of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC), observing that courts cannot be used to undo an electoral verdict delivered by voters.“How many votes did you get? Once people reject you, you use the judicial forum to get relief,” the bench told the petitioner’s counsel, pointing out that Jan Suraaj Party had contested 242 of the 243 assembly seats but failed to win a single constituency. “You just want the election to be declared null and void,” remarked the bench, adding that the scheme should have been challenged at the appropriate stage.The court indicated that the high court would be the appropriate forum to examine any state-specific grievances. “Since it deals with only one state, please go to that high court. In some cases, there is a serious issue of freebies, which we will seriously examine,” the bench said.Senior advocate CU Singh, appearing for Jan Suraaj Party, argued that the Bihar government had misused the Mukhyamantri Mahila Rojgar Yojana to influence voters by enrolling fresh beneficiaries just before the polls and transferring ₹10,000 to women when the MCC was in force. He contended that over 3.5 million women were brought under the scheme during the election period, despite the state facing a grave fiscal deficit. “This is a dole in the sense that ₹10,000 is paid immediately,” Singh submitted.But the bench distinguished between general direct benefit transfer schemes and the programme in question. “The direct transfer scheme is different. This is about women self-help groups,” it observed.While acknowledging that the larger issue of freebies would require examination, the bench questioned the bona fides of the petitioner. “We will consider the freebies issue. But we have to see the bona fide also. We cannot look at that at the behest of a party which has just lost. When you come to power, you will do the exact thing,” it said.Following these observations, the Jan Suraaj Party withdrew its petition.In its plea, Jan Suraaj Party alleged that the ruling dispensation in Bihar engaged in “illegal, unconstitutional and corrupt practices” by enrolling fresh beneficiaries under the welfare scheme and transferring money to an estimated 2.5-3.5 million women voters during the election process, in violation of constitutional guarantees of free and fair elections.The party sought action against the Election Commission of India under Article 324 of the Constitution, which vests it with the authority to conduct free and fair elections, and Section 123 of the Representation of the People Act, which deals with bribery and corrupt practices. It also questioned the deployment of around 180,000 women associated with self-help groups under the JEEVIKA programme at polling booths, alleging that this compromised electoral neutrality.Jan Suraaj Party relied on the Supreme Court’s 2013 judgment in S Subramaniam Balaji vs State of Tamil Nadu to seek comprehensive guidelines on freebies, welfare schemes, and direct benefit transfers during election periods.The plea was filed months after the party’s electoral debut ended in a rout, with the National Democratic Alliance securing a landslide victory of 202 seats in the 243-member assembly.