Bombay HC quashes ECI notification for Goa’s Ponda bye-election, day before polling

The Bombay High Court’s Goa Bench has set aside the Election Commission of India’s notification for the Ponda Assembly bye-election, leading to the cancellation of the polling scheduled for April 9. The court ruled that holding a bye-election is not required as the remaining term of the Goa Legislative Assembly is less than one year.

A Division Bench of Justices Valmiki Menezes and Amit Jamsandekar allowed petitions filed by two voters, Pritam Harmalkar and Ankita Kamat, who challenged the validity of the by-election notification. The court declared the notification invalid and cancelled the April 9 poll.