Court Issues Non-Bailable Warrant for AAP MLA in Jammu and Kashmir
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Synopsis
A non-bailable warrant has been issued against Mehraj Malik, AAP MLA from Doda, by a Jammu court following a defamation case filed by G.M. Saroori. Malik is ordered to appear in court on May 14.
Key Takeaways
- A non-bailable warrant was issued against AAP MLA Mehraj Malik.
- G.M. Saroori filed a defamation suit against Malik.
- The case is under Section 499 of the IPC.
- Malik won his seat in the Legislative Assembly elections.
- AAP currently holds one seat in the J&K Assembly.
Jammu, March 19 (NationPress) A court located in Jammu, J&K has issued a non-bailable warrant against Mehraj Malik, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA representing the Doda Assembly constituency. The Special Excise Mobile Magistrate of Jammu has ordered the police to apprehend the MLA and present him before the court on May 14, the scheduled date for further hearings in this matter.
A defamation case has been brought forth by former Congress leader G.M. Saroori, who accuses Malik of making false statements that have harmed his reputation.
This case has been filed at the Gandoh Police Station under Section 499 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which pertains to defamation.
Mehraj Malik secured victory in the Legislative Assembly elections representing the Doda constituency under an AAP ticket, defeating Saroori and several other candidates.
Currently, the AAP holds a single seat in the 90-member J&K Assembly.
The party lends its support to the Omar Abdullah-led National Conference (NC) government in the union territory.
In the Legislative Assembly elections conducted last year, the NC emerged victorious with 42 seats, followed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with 29, Congress with 6, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) with 3, AAP with 1, CPI(M) with 1, Peoples Conference (PC) with 1, and Awami Ittehad Party (AIP) with 1. Additionally, six Independents were also elected.
The Congress, AAP, and CPI(M) provided external support to the NC government, while five out of six Independent MLAs aligned with the NC.
All 29 seats won by the BJP came from the Jammu division, with the party failing to secure any constituencies in the Valley.
Notably, several prominent candidates endorsed by the BJP faced defeats in the Assembly elections.
The Lok Sabha elections for five seats in J&K were held last year, resulting in the BJP winning two, NC winning two, and the AIP led by Engineer Rashid winning one.
The Legislative Assembly and Lok Sabha elections took place six years after J&K transitioned to a Union Territory on August 5, 2019.
