Candidates with the same names cannot be banned from contesting in the same constituency : Supreme Court

New Delhi – The Supreme Court has rejected a plea seeking ban on candidates with the same names in elections. The court said, ‘If one’s name is Rahul Gandhi or Lalu Prasad Yadav and there are other candidates of the same name in the same constituency, they cannot be prevented from contesting the election.’

The petitioner, Sabu Stephen, had said in the petition that fielding another candidate in the name of a candidate standing in popular constituencies is an old trick. This creates confusion in the minds of the voters. Similar names cause people to vote for the wrong candidate and harm the right one. Rival political parties deliberately field such candidates. In return, the nominated candidate gets money, items and many other benefits.

The court said that children are named by their parents. If one’s parents have given the child’s name same as someone else’s name, how can he be prevented from contesting elections ? Will this not affect their rights ?