The Delhi High Court today asked a petitioner seeking cancellation of the registration of Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) to inform it the ground on which the Election Commission had dismissed the plea.
A bench of justices Pradeep Nandrajog and Mukta Gupta also asked petitioner, Socialist Party of India Vice President Balwant Singh Khera, whether any fraud was committed by SAD during registration of the party or after that.
The court's direction came during hearing of the PIL which alleged that the SAD had obtained its registration by "fraud" and it should be cancelled.
The petitioner underlined that the SAD had signed an undertaking at the time of its registration to uphold the Constitution.
"One of those undertakings is that it shall be secular, but its activities are not secular in nature," advocate Indira Unninayar, appearing for Khera, said, pointing towards the party's admitted participation in gurdwara elections.
The counsel also claimed that the right to equality and non-discrimination guaranteed under Article 14 of the Constitution, and the right to freedom of religion guaranteed by Article 25, were being repeatedly violated as "religion is being admittedly introduced into the politics of Punjab by SAD, yet the state through its authorised body (EC) has repeatedly refused to take necessary action to restore/guard these rights".
"They (SAD members) have been contesting gurdwara committee elections as a religious body and their party specifies that all members must be practising Sikhs," the plea said.
The EC sought dismissal of the plea seeking cancellation of registration of the SAD.
EC's counsel said the allegation levelled in the petition that the SAD was "a religious organisation and not a secular political party", was "baseless".
To this court said this issue needs consideration, so the counsel for the petitioner will have to make her arguments in same direction.
The court has listed the matter for further hearing on May 24.
