Itanagar, April 27: In an interesting development, the Gauhati High Court’s Itanagar bench has declared the election of Dasanglu Pul, a ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lawmaker in Arunachal Pradesh, ‘null and void’ under the Representation of People Act, 1951 for concealing information about her properties in her election affidavit.

Lupalum Kri, the Congress candidate who lost to Dasanglu Pul in 2019, had moved the high court challenging Pul’s win, saying she did not declare her husband’s four properties in Mumbai and two in Arunachal Pradesh in her election affidavit. He added her nomination was accepted despite his objections. Pul had said she relinquished her claim over her husband’s properties.

Pul was re-elected from Hayuliang in May 2019 assembly polls. She earlier won the seat in a bye-election in 2016 after her husband and former chief minister Kalikho Pul’s death.

“…the respondent/returned candidate [Dasanglu Pul] had not presented her nomination paper in accordance with Section 33 of the Representation of People Act, 1951, and as such the nomination paper of the respondent/returned candidate is liable to be rejected,” the court said on Tuesday.

The court also said “improper acceptance” of Dasanglu Pul’s nomination papers “materially affected” the result of her election. This order was given on April 25, 2023.

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