Court Dismisses Plea Against Sonia Gandhi Alleging Voter Roll Fraud

A Delhi court has dismissed a plea demanding an investigation against senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi. The plea alleged that she was included in the electoral rolls of India three years prior to gaining citizenship in 1983.

Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Vaibhav Chaurasia stated that the matter of citizenship falls under the exclusive constitutional and statutory jurisdiction of the central government. He commented that the complaint was a misuse of the legal process, aiming to create unwarranted jurisdiction for the court by presenting a civil dispute as a criminal matter.

The complaint, filed by advocate Vikas Tripathi, suggested that Gandhi's name was fraudulently added to the voter list of New Delhi in 1980, before she became a citizen. Despite these allegations, the court ruled that the petitioner's claims were unsubstantiated and lacking the necessary elements to constitute the alleged offences of cheating and forgery.

(With inputs from agencies.)