It is a big shock for Azam Khan, who is MP from Rampur in Uttar Pradesh that the Allahabad High Court Monday annulled the election of his son, Mohammad Abdullah Azam Khan, as an MLA from Uttar Pradesh’s Suar constituency on the grounds that he was underage and not qualified to fight the poll in 2017.
Now, SP leader Azam Khan’s son Abdullah Khan will not be able to contest the election until he becomes 25 years old. The High Court commenced hearing on a plea filed by the Kazim Khan. Reviewing Kazim Khan’s election petition, the bench ruled that Abdullah Azam Khan was not qualified to contest the election as he had not yet turned 25 at the time of filing of the nomination papers.
Opposing Abdullah Azam Khan, Kazim Khan stated that the elected MLA’s actual date of birth was January 1, 1993, and not September 30, 1990, as claimed in the nomination paper. Hence, he was yet to reach 25 years of age to become eligible to fight the election, when he filed the nomination papers on January 25, 2017.
Kazim Khan had further pointed out in his petition that educational certificates, passport, and visa of Abdullah Azam Khan mentioned January 1, 1993, as his date of birth but there was an irregularity in his nomination papers as Abdullah Khan had mentioned September 30, 1990, as his birth date on the basis of a certificate from Lucknow’s Birth and Death registrar.
The bench canceled the Suar MLA after examining the facts as established by various documents, including the service record of Abdullah Khan’s mother. It also had mentioned January 1, 1993, as his date of birth. Emphasizing on the service book of Abdullah Khan’s mother, Tazeen Fatima, a former Rajya Sabha MP, Justice Kesarwani said in his 49-page judgment that it was an “admitted piece of evidence”.
Earlier Abdullah Khan’s mother appeared as a witness before the court in connection with this case and contended that her son was born on September 30, 1990 as can be seen by her service records, registering the fact that she had taken maternity leave in 1990. The court, however, rejected her claim. Dr. Uma Singh, a senior gynaecologist at Queen Mary’s Hospital, Gandhi Memorial and associated hospitals, including K G Medical College, Lucknow, also appeared in the court as a witness.
