Lucknow Mayor Administers Oath To SP Corporator Following Allahabad HC Order Suspending Her Powers

Tiwari, who also happens to be the General Secretary of the Oudh Bar Association, had approached the High Court pleading that the oath was not being administered to him by the Mayor of Lucknow, despite an order of the Election Tribunal declaring the petitioner as the elected candidate from Ward Number 73, Faizullaganj.

During the pendency of the petition, various opportunities were given by the High Court to the Mayor to file affidavits and explain why an oath was not being administered to the petitioner.

Since no substantial response was forthcoming, on Wednesday, a bench of Justice Alok Mathur and Justice Syed Qamar Hasan Rizvi suspended the administrative and financial powers of the Mayor for persistent non-compliance with its order.

In its order, the bench had observed thus:

"The order of suspension of the administrative and financial powers of the respondent Mayor of Lucknow as directed above, is therefore, not punitive in character, but a consequential Constitutional measure intended to secure compliance of judicial orders and prevent continued obstruction of statutory duties".

It may be noted that, in the 2023 local polls, SP candidate Tiwari was defeated by the BJP candidate Pradeep Kumar Shukla. Thereafter, Tiwari had moved a petition before the Election Tribunal alleging that the BJP candidate provided incorrect information regarding his marital status in the nomination papers' affidavit.

On his petition, the Tribunal, in December last year, annulled Shukla's election and declared the runner-up, Tiwari, the elected councillor of ward number 73.

Mayor Kharkwal had claimed in the High Court that since the returning candidate had filed an appeal, the oath was not being administered.