BHORANIYA RAFIQBHAI DAWOODBHAI Vs. KHORAJIYA SOYABHAI SULEMAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These three petitions raise identical issues against the impugned decisions of the Election Tribunal setting aside the result of the elections to the three wards in question of Bhilvan Gram Panchayat on the ground that the nomination papers of the respondent - candidates were wrongly rejected and directing the elections to the said wards to be held afresh by accepting their nomination papers, and further directing that the election to the office of Upa-Sarpanch of the Panchayat should not be held until the candidates elected from these three wards were able to participate in such election.

(2.) In Special Civil Application No.11970 of 2003, the returning officer, by his order dated 20th March 2002, informed the respondent No.1, who had filed his nomination as a candidate for membership of the Village Panchayat from Ward No.6 that his nomination paper was rejected on 19-3-2002 as he did not state the number of the ward therein. Even in Special Civil Application No.11972 of 2003 also, similar communication sent on 20th March 2002 was sent by the Returning Officer to the respondent No.1, stating that upon scrutiny done on 19th March 2002, the ward number stated in the nomination form was incorrect when checked in the voters' list and therefore, his nomination form was rejected under Rule 12 of the Gujarat Panchayat Election Rules. In Special Civil Application No.12419 of 2003, the nomination form of the respondent No.1 was rejected on the ground that the name of the respondent No.1 was at Srl.No.73 in the voters' list but the proposer of the respondent No.1 had not stated the correct serial number and her name was shown at Srl.No.103.

(3.) Against the rejection of their respective nomination forms during scrutiny which was made on 19th March 2002, the concerned candidates who are respondent No.1 in these three petitions, challenged the communications of the Returning Officer informing them about the rejection of their nomination forms under Rule 12 of the said Rules before the Civil Judge [S.D.] Patan in Election Petitions Nos. 4/2002, 5/2002 and 6/2002 under Section 31 of the Gujarat Panchayats Act, 1993. The learned counsel for both the sides have argued these three petitions by referring to the record of the Special Civil Application No. 11970 of 2003.