Mumbai, July 15, 2026: The Bombay High Court on Wednesday directed the Returning Officer of the Mumbai Press Club to allow all candidates whose nomination forms were rejected on the ground of “signature mismatch” to contest the club elections and appointed a court observer to oversee the polling process.
HC Defers Polls By A Week
Passing final orders by consent, Justice Arif Doctor directed the Returning Officer to include all nominations rejected on the ground of signature mismatch. The court also postponed the elections from July 17 to July 24 and directed that July 16 be kept open for the withdrawal of nominations.
Advocate Mikhail Behl has been appointed as the court observer and will be paid an honorarium of Rs 45,000 by the club for supervising the election process.
During the hearing, the plaintiffs submitted that at least one day should be provided for the withdrawal of nominations and that the polling should be deferred by a week in line with the original election schedule. Although the request was initially opposed by the Mumbai Press Club management, the parties later agreed to a consent order.
Rejected Candidates Get Relief
Under the agreed terms, all nominations rejected due to signature mismatch will be accepted, candidates may withdraw their nominations on July 16, and polling will be held on July 24.
The order came a day after the court granted interim relief to journalists Anil Singh, Madhu Nainan and O.P. Tiwari, whose nominations had been rejected. The court had also allowed them to amend their plea to include other members whose nominations were rejected on similar grounds.
The suit alleged that the election process was arbitrary and that nomination forms were rejected on frivolous grounds such as signature mismatch to favour a particular panel. The Returning Officer, Deputy Returning Officer and the Mumbai Press Club have been named as defendants.
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The Mumbai Press Club had issued a circular stating that candidates whose nominations were rejected due to signature mismatch could verify their signatures and be allowed to contest. The High Court's final order extends that relief to all candidates whose nominations were rejected solely on that ground.
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