SURSATIYA Vs. STATE OF U P

JUDGEMENT

(1.) SUNIL Ambwani, J. Heard Shri Hari Om Yadav, learned Counsel for the petitioner. Shri A. K. Singh assisted by Shri SUNIL Kumar Singh appears for the respondent.

(2.) BY an order dated 19. 11. 2007 the Sub Divisional Magistrate/prescribed Authority/election Tribunal, Jakhaniya, Ghazipur has in an election petition filed by Smt. Usha Devi against Smt. Sursatia as Gram Pradhan of Village Ukraon, Pargana Bahariyabad, Tehsil Zamaniya, Distt. Ghazipur directed recount of votes giving rise to this writ petition.

(3.) BY an order dated 9. 7. 2007 the Election Tribunal summoned the records. This order was not challenged by the petitioner and thus constituted a valid mate rial for proceeding further to hear the application for recount of votes. The peti tioner objected to the recount. Rejecting the objections the tribunal found from the election records that in the memo prepared from the electoral list on 24. 9. 2007, 1931 candidates were marked. In the memo of the counterfoils made on 25. 9. 2007 the envelope containing counterfoils of booth No. 106 was not traceable. The 407 counterfoils of booth No. 104; 380 of booth No. 105 and 275 of booth No. 107 were available. The 233 counterfoils were found without any envelope and thus a total number of 1295 counterfoils were available. In case 636 votes of booth No. 106 are also added, a total number of 1931 counterfoils could be available and that same number is found to be marked in the electoral list. The Election Tribunal found that in this manner the election record does not tally with the number of votes polled and number of votes actually marked on the electoral list and the votes of which the counterfoils were available, raising a serious doubt on the validity of counting making a prima facie case for recount.