India, Nov. 20 -- The Orissa high court has dismissed a petition that challenged the victory of Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan from the Sambalpur Parliamentary constituency in the 2024 general elections, ruling that the plea had "fatal procedural defects" that rendered it legally unsustainable.

Justice Sanjay Kumar Mishra, in a detailed 36-page order delivered on November 19, held that while the petition suffered from minor curable defects regarding verification and affidavit formalities, it fundamentally failed to specify the precise nature of alleged corrupt practices as mandated under Section 123 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951.

The petition was filed by one Subash Mohapatra, an unsuccessful candidate from ...