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Special judge Vishal Gogane was hearing a review petition against the September 11 order of the magistrate court, which had dismissed the plea saying that the complaint was “fabricated with the purpose of conferring jurisdiction on the court through allegations which are legally untenable, immaterial and beyond the scope of jurisdiction of this forum”.
Issuing notices to Gandhi and Delhi Police, Judge Gogné posted the case for further proceedings on January 6.
The review petition was filed by advocate Vikas Tripathi, vice-president of the Central Delhi Court Bar Association of Rouse Avenue courts.
Tripathi’s counsel, senior advocate Pawan Narang, had alleged before the magistrate court that in January 1980, Gandhi’s name was added as a voter for the New Delhi constituency even though she was not an Indian citizen.
He claimed to have committed “some forgery” and “fraud” on a public authority.
However, the magistrate had rejected the plea seeking investigation, saying that the complainant had sought to speed up the criminal law by persuading the court to assume jurisdiction, which is not legally vested in it.
He had said that “mere bald assertions, without the necessary particulars required to attract the statutory elements of fraud or forgery” cannot take the place of a legally sustainable allegation.
The magistrate had said that the petition was relying only on the extract of the voter list, which was “a photocopy of a photocopy of the purported extract of the uncertified voter list” of 1980.
Condemning the complaint, the magistrate had said, “Such a course is, in fact, an abuse of the process of law by presenting a civil or ordinary dispute in the garb of criminality, merely to create a jurisdiction where none exists.”