Bombay High Court Halts Goa By-Election Amid Controversy

The Bombay High Court on Wednesday quashed the Election Commission of India's notification for the by-election to the Ponda assembly seat in Goa, just a day before polling, citing a violation of the Representation of the People Act. The term of the legislature is set to expire in less than one year.

Despite postal ballots already being cast, the court cancelled Thursday's election and refused to stay its judgment. The ruling BJP termed this decision as shocking, while the Congress accused it of colluding with the ECI to delay the notification and vowed to appeal in the Supreme Court.

A bench of Justices Valmiki Menezes and Amit S Jamsandekar described the by-election notification as 'arbitrary.' The bypoll was prompted by the death of BJP MLA Ravi Naik but was cancelled due to the remaining term's short duration. The court noted the winning candidate would serve only around nine months.