A Delhi court has set aside a Magistrate court order that had rejected a petition seeking the registration of an FIR against Congress leader Sonia Gandhi in a voter list case. The court directed the Magistrate court to examine the matter afresh. It has not ordered an FIR against Sonia Gandhi at this stage.
The petitioner, Vikas Tripathi, alleges that Sonia Gandhi’s name was included in the electoral roll in 1980, although she acquired Indian citizenship only in 1983. He further alleges that forged documents were used to add her name to the list and had sought an FIR on that basis. These are allegations made by the petitioner and have not been established.
Special Judge Vishal Gogne observed that the Magistrate court had not given proper reasons for rejecting the allegations and that its order lacked detailed reasoning. The judge said the lower court had also failed to properly examine key facts: Sonia Gandhi’s name appearing on the 1980 voter list, its removal in 1982 and its re-inclusion in 1983. Whether these facts disclose an offence, the judge said, must be examined with reasons. The judge also noted that the Magistrate court had decided the matter without examining a police officer and without seeking a status report from the police.
On remand, the Magistrate court must hear the complainant and the police officer, conduct any necessary inquiry and take a fresh decision. The next hearing is scheduled for September 29.
The Magistrate court had earlier reasoned that citizenship matters fall within the Central government’s domain and voter list matters within the Election Commission’s. The revision court held that rejecting the complaint on that ground alone was not the correct approach. Tripathi had filed the revision petition challenging the Magistrate court’s order of September 11, 2025, and that petition will now be reconsidered.