KALUBHAI ISHARBHAI PATEL Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner has challenged an order dated 08.05.2015, at Annexure-A to the petition, rejecting petitioner's objection to as many as 40 traders, whose names were included in the voters list in the traders constituency for the election to the Agriculture Produces Market Committee, Pathavada, Dist. Banaskantha. The litigation has long history.

(2.) Brief facts are as under:-

(3.) In background of such facts, learned Counsel Shri Dipen Desai for the petitioner submitted that at all stages, the design and intention on part of the Chairman and his supporters in the APMC to induct voters at the last minute to affect the outcome of the election is manifested. He would contend that the previous election programme once declared was called off on the pretext that new areas of three villages are required to be added in the APMC when the Revenue Department had already added the villages way back in the year 2009. Thus, this factor was used only as a rouse to cancel the election once programme was already declared by the Director. In the meantime, process was undertaken to grant new licences, which would enable the licence holders to be included in the voters list. Even the directions issued by the High Court in its order dated 23.02.2015 to complete the election within the stipulated time were not carried out. Only when the petitioner filed fresh petition, a statement came to be made that the election programme will be declared latest by 10.04.2015. In the meantime, in two lots, APMC on 28.02.2015 and 31.03.2015 granted as many as 27 licences. Even though these licences were granted, names of the licence holders could not have been included in the voters list had the authority adhered to the time frame provided by the High Court in its order dated 23.02.2015 and declared the election programme accordingly. He therefore submitted that the concept of induction of new voters on the eve of election only to convert minority in the majority should be applied in the present case.