The Supreme Court on Friday refused to interfere with the maintainability of an election petition challenging the election of former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel from the Patan Assembly constituency, holding that the issues raised by him can be adjudicated during the trial before the High Court.
A Bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V. Mohan dismissed Baghel’s special leave petition assailing an order of the Chhattisgarh High Court, which had declined to reject the election petition at the threshold. The Court, however, clarified that Baghel would remain at liberty to raise all legal and factual defences before the High Court during the course of the proceedings.
The election petition was instituted by BJP leader Vijay Baghel, who has alleged that Bhupesh Baghel violated the 48-hour campaign silence period prescribed under Section 126 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 by allegedly conducting a roadshow on the eve of polling during the 2023 Chhattisgarh Assembly elections. The petitioner contends that the alleged conduct amounted to a corrupt electoral practice warranting the setting aside of the election.
Appearing for Bhupesh Baghel, Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal argued that even if the allegations were accepted in their entirety, they would constitute only an electoral offence under Section 126 of the Representation of the People Act and not a “corrupt practice” under Section 123 of the statute. He further submitted that the alleged incident could not have materially affected the election result, particularly when Baghel had secured victory by a margin of nearly 20,000 votes.
During the hearing, the Bench observed that the question of whether the alleged violation had any material impact on the outcome of the election involved disputed questions of fact that could only be determined after appreciation of evidence. Justice Joymalya Bagchi remarked that the nature and effect of the alleged roadshow could not be conclusively examined at the preliminary stage without a full trial.
The Court was, therefore, not inclined to terminate the proceedings at the threshold and held that the maintainability objections raised by Baghel could appropriately be considered by the High Court while adjudicating the election petition on merits.
The dispute traces its origin to the 2023 Chhattisgarh Assembly elections, in which Bhupesh Baghel was elected from the Patan constituency. After the Chhattisgarh High Court rejected his plea seeking dismissal of the election petition, he approached the Supreme Court challenging that decision.
With the dismissal of the special leave petition, the election petition will now proceed before the Chhattisgarh High Court, where Bhupesh Baghel will be entitled to contest the allegations and raise all available legal objections during the trial.
Case: Bhupesh Baghel v. Vijay Baghel & Ors., SLP (Civil) No. 24440 of 2026.
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