Candidates need not disclose every property unless it's luxurious

The Supreme Court on Tuesday said that Candidates need not disclose each and every moveable property owned by them or their family, unless they are of substantial value or reflect a luxurious lifestyle.

The top court said that the candidates have the right to privacy regarding matters which are irrelevant to the candidature for public office. “Voters have no absolute right to know about each and every asset of the candidates fighting elections,” the court observed.

The Supreme Court division bench, comprising Justices Anirudhha Bose and Sanjay Kumar, direction came as it upheld the election of Independent MLA Karikho Kri from Tezu in the 2019 Arunachal Pradesh Assembly election, setting aside the Gauhati High Court order that had declared his election as void.

In the petition, Karikho Kri's opponent had claimed that the MLA "exercised undue influence" by not disclosing three vehicles owned by his wife and son while filing his nomination.

The court noted that the vehicles were either gifted or sold before the filing of the nomination by Karikho Kri. Thus, the top court said the vehicles could not be considered to be still owned by Kri's family.

The Supreme Court also rejected the petitioner's contention that Kri should have revealed all details of his assets as the voters' right to know was absolute.