Sultanpur (UP), Sep 2 Former Samajwadi Party MLA from Lambhua Santosh Pandey and 10 of his supporters were acquitted by an MP-MLA court here on Wednesday for lack of sufficient evidence in a model code of conduct violation case related to the 2022 Assembly elections.
Special Judge Shubham Verma acquitted Pandey and the 10 others, his counsel Santosh Kumar Pandey said.
The case was registered during the 2022 Assembly elections at Lambhua and Kotwali Dehat police stations over allegations that the accused had organised a public meeting without permission in violation of the Model Code of Conduct.
The court also acquitted SP leader Satyapal Yadav, former district panchayat member Parmatma Yadav, Alok Mani Tripathi, Jafar Ali, Akash Singh, Rakesh Singh, Irfan, Naeem Ahmad, Abdul Qayum and Shoaib Akhtar.
Defence counsel said the prosecution failed to produce sufficient evidence to substantiate the allegations.
Following the verdict, the former MLA alleged that the police had registered a false case under political pressure and said he had received justice from the court.
Model Code of Conduct is a non legally binding set of guidelines issued by the Election Commission of India to ensure smooth and peaceful elections.
