DEVASIA DEVASIA Vs. SIBI KUZHIKATTU

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner has approached this Court challenging Ext.P1 order of the Kerala State Election Commission in O.P.No.76 of 2018.

(2.) The petitioner was an elected member from Ward No.XI of Karimannoor Grama Panchayat in the election to the local self-government institutions in November 2015. The Panchayat committee consists of 14 members. In the elections held in November 2015, eight members, including the petitioner, were elected representing the United Democratic Front (UDF), and six members were elected representing the Left Democratic Front (LDF). In the month of June, 2018, an election was held to elect the President of the Grama Panchayat. The petitioner was elected as the President of the Grama Panchayath as a candidate of the Left Democratic Front (LDF). He had also exercised his franchise in his own favour, as a result of which, the candidates of the UDF and the LDF got seven votes each. Since the votes obtained by candidates of both fronts were seven each, the President was thereafter declared elected by draw of lots and the petitioner came to be the elected President of the Panchayat.

(3.) The 1st respondent approached the Kerala State Election Commission by filing O.P.No.76 of 2018 under the provisions of Sec. 4 of the Kerala Local Authorities (Prohibition of Defection) Act, 1999 (hereinafter referred to as the '1999 Act'). The Kerala State Election Commission, by Ext.P1 order dtd. 17/1/2023, allowed the petition filed by the 1st respondent, finding that the petitioner had attracted the disqualification under the first and second limbs of Sec. 3(1)(a) of the 1999 Act. Since the order of the Kerala State Election Commission in O.P No.76 of 2018 was only on 17/1/2023, the petitioner contested in the subsequent election to the local bodies held in the month of December 2020 and was again elected as a member of the Panchayat. On Ext.P1 order being issued by the Kerala State Election Commission, the petitioner was not permitted to continue as a member, prompting the petitioner to approach this Court by filing the above writ petition.