KESHEO PRASAD Vs. A.D. MANI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is an appeal under Section 116 -A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, from a decision of the Election Tribunal, Bhopal, declaring the election of the Appellant to the Council of States void and the Respondent No. 1, Shri Mani, as having been duly elected. The decision was given on a petition filed by the said Respondent challenging the Appellant's election.

(2.) ON 24th March 1960 an election was held to fill five vacancies in the Council of States. The Appellant and the Respondents contested the election. The election was according to the system of 'proportional representation' by means of single transferable vote Out of 270 ballot papers received by the Returning Officer, five were declared to be invalid. The quota which a candidate had to secure for getting elected was, as ascertained under Rule 122 of the Representation of the People (Conduct of Elections and Election Petitions) Rules, 1956, hereinafter referred to as the Rules), 4417 points. At the end of the counting of votes the Returning Officer declared the Appellant, Shri Verma and the Respondents Nos. 2 to 5 elected. The Returning Officer found that 3944 points secured by the Respondent No I were less than those obtained by the Appellant who was the last candidate to be desisted.

(3.) ALL these contentions of the Appellant were rejected by the Tribunal. In the course of the scrutiny of ballot papers before the Tribunal it was revealed that the solitary ballot paper in which the first preference was recorded in favour of the Respondent Shri Agnibhoj, the second and third preferences had been given to the Respondent No. 6, Shri Niranjan Verma and the Respondent No. 1, Shri Mani, respectively, The Tribunal found, on the evidence of the Returning Officer, Shri Raghunathsingh that he had omitted to evaluate the third preference recorded in favour, of the Respondent No. 1 in this ballot paper, and that if the third preference had been taken into consideration and properly evaluated. Shri Mani would have got 4044 points as against 4038 secured by the Appellant. The Tribunal, therefore, unseated the Appellant and gave the seat to the Respondent Shri Mani. The Tribunal observed at the end of paragraph 44 of the judgment under appeal.