KIRPAL SINGH M L A Vs. UTTAM SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Shri Kripal Singh was elected to the Punjab Legislative Assembly from Majitha Constituency at the general elections held in 1972. His election was set aside by High Court in an Election Petition filed by one of the defeated candidates on the ground that the nomination paper of another candidate was improperly rejected by the Returning Officer. The nomination paper of one Basant Singh had been rejected on the ground that Basant Singh was a development officer in the employment of the Life Insurance Corporation and was therefore ineligible to seek election to the Assembly under the Staff Regulations of the Life Insurance Corporation. The High Court took the view that if Basant Singh defied the Staff Regulations and sought election to the Assembly he might have made himself liable to disciplinary action but that did not disqualify him from seeking election to the Assembly. So the nomination paper of Basant Singh was held to have been improperly rejected and the election of Kripal Singh was set aside. His election having been set aside he appealed to this Court under Section 116-A of the Representation of the People Act. While admitting the appeal this Court made an interim order enabling the appellant to attend the Assembly and sign the register, without participating in the proceedings or voting and without drawing any remuneration. Without meaning any disrespect to the learned judges who made the interim order we think that where an election is set aside for no fault of his, such as a corrupt practice committed by him or his agent or a disqualification suffered by him, but on the ground that someone else's nomination had been improperly rejected, the more appropriate order would perhaps be to grant an absolute stay so that the Constituency may not go unrepresented for no fault of either the elected or those who elected.

(2.) Subsequent to the filing of the appeal, there have been three more general elections. The present appeal has thus become wholly infructuous, indeed a sad commentary on the legal process. Though the question raised is an important one which may arise again and again in the future we do not propose to make any pronouncement upon it since we think the matter is one which should receive the consideration of the Parliament and suitable legislation be enacted. Under Art. 191(1) of the Constitution a person shall be disqualified for being chosen as, and for being a member of the Legislative Assembly or Legislative Council of a State -

(3.) The clear and undoubted object of Art. 191(1)(a) to (e) and the provisions of the Representation of the People Act (including S. 10) is the preservation. of the purity and integrity of the election process by preventing Government or State employees from taking part in the elections. But then S. 10 appears to confine the disqualification, in so far as it relates to employees of Government Companies to the 'top-brass' only if such an uncouth expression may be allowed to creep into the judgment of a Court. Nowadays the activities of the State are so manifold and prolific that the State has been forced, in the interests of better management and administration and in order to further the Directive Principles of State Policy, to set up various Corporations which are but mere instrumentalities of the State. Is the principle of Art. 191(1)(a) then to be extended to employees of State Corporations also by enacting appropriate laws under Art. 191(1)(e) Or are employees of Public Corporations to be treated differently from employees of the Government Are not some of them in a better position to exert undesirable pressure than Government employees On the other hand, are a tremendously large number of employees of Public Corporations to be denied the opportunity of being chosen, as representatives of the People Do all the considerations applicable to Government Employees equally apply to employees of Public Sector undertakings Is there no distinguishing feature Are a large mass of highly or moderately lierate people to be denied the right to speak for the people Is the right to be elected, to be confined, without meaning any disrespect to anyone to the professional politicians only These are some of the vital questions posed and which require to be answered. The answer should be best given by the elected representatives of the people themselves. We are not shirking the decision of these questions but our decision can only be confined to interpretation. Not so, Parliament which can decide upon the Policy. That is why, we recommend to the Government to have the matter examined by the Law Commission very early. When a suitable occasion arises in the future we will, of course, deal with the matter, probably helped by new legislation.