LI Network
Published on: 10 September 2023 at 09:14 IST
A local court in Nagpur has exonerated Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in connection with allegations that he failed to disclose pending criminal cases in his election affidavit before the 2014 assembly elections.
Civil Judge S. S. Jadhav declared Fadnavis “dosh mukt” (acquitted) during the court proceedings, where Fadnavis was present virtually.
The complaint against Fadnavis was filed by Satish Uke, an advocate, who sought criminal action against the BJP leader alleging that Fadnavis had not disclosed cases of cheating and forgery registered against him in 1996 and 1998 in his election affidavit.
In response, Fadnavis acknowledged an inadvertent mistake made by his lawyer in collating information about pending criminal cases during the 2014 election affidavit submission.
He clarified that there was no deliberate intention to conceal information about the two “insignificant” complaint cases. He described their omission from the affidavit as a result of sheer inadvertence.
Fadnavis, who represents the Nagpur South West assembly constituency, emphasized that he had included cases of more serious nature in his election affidavit.
He further pointed out his track record as a sitting member of the assembly since 1999, consistently winning by a significant margin.
During the legal proceedings, Fadnavis appeared before the court on two occasions to provide his statement.
It’s worth noting that Satish Uke, the complainant, is presently incarcerated as he faces charges of money laundering and has been arrested by the Enforcement Directorate.