Shillong, Dec 15: An interim application has been filed on Thursday in the Meghalaya High Court praying that the National People’s Party (NPP) be derecognised and its symbol withdrawn until the case filed by TMC national spokesperson against the NPP’s non-filing of 2018 election expenditure report is decided by the court.
The interim application has been moved considering that the High Court will be in recess till January 27, 2023, by which time it is anticipated that elections to the Meghalaya Assembly 2022 will be notified.
The NPP was de-recognized in 2015 by the Election Commission of India for the same default — i.e. non-filing of election expenditure statement in time.
The main case in the Meghalaya High Court has been filed by TMC National Spokesperson Saket Gokhale praying that the Election Commission be ordered to take action against NPP for non-filing of election expenditure statement for Meghalaya Assembly Elections, 2018.
Under EC rules, election expenditure statements have to be filed within 75 days of conclusion of Assembly polls.
However, despite three notices being issued by the EC to the NPP over the last 4.5 years, the party has failed to submit its election expenditure statement.
