MOHD OSMAN SHAHEED Vs. MOHD BAQUR HUSSAIN SHAAZ

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The peitioner in this Contempt Application No. 7 of 1979 is an unsuccessful candidate at the Assembly Elections held to the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly in February, 1978. He lost the electoral contest which was won by one Salahuddin Owesi who is not a party to the Contempt Case No. 7 of 1979 although he is one of the respondents to the connected Contempt Case No. 8 of 1979. The petitioner, having lost the election, filed an application petition No. 18 of 1979 in this Court questioning the result of that election. The election petition is under the Representation of Peoples' Act. The Election petition is presently being tried by Sri. Justice Narasinga Rao, one of the Honourable Judges of this Court.

(2.) By 7-3-1979, nine witnesses for the election petitioner were examined. The present petitioner, as required by the new Civil Procedure Code, examined himself as the first witness. P.W. 3 one of the important witnesses for the election petitioner and a key-figure in this contempt case is one Mahaboob Alam Khan. Although his chief was over, his cross was deferred at the request of the aforesaid Sri Owesi.

(3.) On 7-3-1979 by the time Court rose for the day, the chief-examination of the nineth witness was over. There were large crowds attending and watching the Court proceedings. At the end of the day as these crowds were thinning the Court Hall and coming out of the Court premises, copies of 'Saz-E-Deccan', an evening Urdu daily news paper, were being freely dustributed among all and sundry by persons who are alleged to belong to Majlis-l-lttehadi-ul-Muslimin, of which the aforesaid Owesi is the President.