RATILAL SUKABHAI MENAT Vs. DAMOR RUPSIBAI SUKABHAI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner has challenged the judgment dated 22.3.2015 passed by the learned Civil Judge Bhiloda in Election Petition No.2 of 2013. By such judgment the petitioner's Election Petition calling in question the election of respondent No.1 as sarpanch of Village : Bhatela came to be rejected.

(2.) Brief facts are as under :­ The State Election Commission issued a notification for conducting election to various gram­panchayats including the Village : Bhatela. As per the election programme the last date for filling the nomination was 5.10.2013. Scrutiny of nomination papers would take place on 7.10.2013. Nomination could be withdrawn latest by 8.10.2013. Polling would take place on 20.10.2013. Counting of votes would take place on 22.10.2013 followed by the declaration of the result.

(3.) The petitioner as well as respondent No.1 both filed their nominations for the election of sarpanch. Their nominations were duly accepted after scrutiny. The petitioner admittedly did not raise any objection against the nomination form of the respondent No.1. However, after the election was over on the premise that the nomination form of respondent No.1 did not carry several vital details and that much of the details supplied were inaccurate, the petitioner filed Election Petition on 18.11.2013 before the competent Court in terms of Section 31 of the Gujarat Panchayat Act, 1993. In such Election Petition the petitioner pointed out that the counting of the votes took place on 22.10.2013 in which the respondent No.1 received 337 votes and petitioner received 336 votes. However, according to the petitioner the nomination of the respondent No.1 was defective. He had not supplied various vital details and several declarations made were false. On such basis the petitioner prayed that the respondent No.1 be declared disqualified and the petitioner be declared elected as sarpanch. In order to show that the Election Petition was filed within the period of limitation, the petitioner contended that period of limitation would begin to run from the day the Election Commission would publish the result in terms of Rule 63(3) of the Gujarat Panchayat Election Rules, 1994 ( 'the Rules' for short).