Upadhyay, a BJP leader, cited the specific example of Samajwadi Party (SP) fielding Nahid Hasan from the Kairana constituency as a candidate for the upcoming assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh.
Upadhyay alleged that Hasan is a notorious gangster but SP neither published his criminal records in electronic, print and social media nor the reason of his selection which is mandatory as per the February 2020 judgment of the Supreme Court.
“Nahid Hasan is in custody under the Gangster Act imposed on him around 11 months ago and he is the first candidate to file nomination in the first phase of Uttar Pradesh Assembly Elections. On 13.2.2021, Shamli Police imposed the Gangster Act on Nahid Hasan, the two-time MLA from Kairana. He has multiple criminal cases and is the mastermind behind the Hindu exodus from Kairana. There are many criminal cases including fraud and extortion and was declared a fugitive by Special MLA-MP Court,” the plea stated.
The Supreme Court in its February 2020 judgment in Rambabu Singh Thakur v. Sunil Arora & Ors, directed that political parties should upload details of candidates with criminal backgrounds on their official websites as well as in newspapers and on social media.
The Court had reiterated its own 2018 ruling in this regard and ordered that details of criminal antecedents of candidates should include the nature of the crime, whether charges have been framed etc, the Court had said.
The apex court had further held that the parties should give reasons on why each candidate is being fielded for elections. It was also made clear by the Supreme Court that the ability to win elections should not be the reason furnished for fielding the candidate
Source: Barandbench
