RADHAKANTA JUADI Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner is the elected Sarpanch of Mayabarha in the district of Sonepur. Apart from the petitioner, there were three other candidates to contest the election to be the office of the Sarpanch of the said Grama Panchayat. After declaration of the result of the election, the opp. party no. 2 filed an application under Section 31 of the Orissa Grama Panchayat Act before the learned Civil Judge (Junior Division), Rampur challenging the election of the petitioner on the main ground that he had more than two children born after the cut off date. THE said election petition was registered as MJC No. 10 of 2007. THE petitioner after appearing in the said election dispute has filed a show cause/written statement. In paragraph-4 of the written statement, the petitioner denied the allegation with regard to the dates of birth of his children stating thesame to be incorrect and false. On 26.6.2010, the opp. party no. 2(election petitioner) filed an alleged extract of the immunization registerindicating that the male child was born on 6.8.2003. After filing of thewritten statement by the petitioner, the opp. party no. 2, who is theelection petitioner in the court below, filed an application under Order 6Rule 17 C.P.C. seeking amendment of the petition, when the case wasposted for trial. THE learned Election Tribunal by its order dated3.12.2007 allowed the said petition for amendment against which thepresent petitioner preferred an appeal before the learned District Judge,Sonepur. THE appeal was dismissed by order dated 22.2.2008 confirmingthe order of the learned Election Tribunal by which the amendment wasallowed. Being aggrieved, the petitioner has preferred the present writpetition calling in question the orders passed by the learned ElectionTribunal and the learned Appellate Court are at Annexures-5 and 6. THEproposed amendment in the application under Order 6 Rule 17 C.P.C.,which was sought for by the opp. party no. 2, is as follows:

(2.) IN paragraph-4 of the last line after the words the date ofbirth "6.8.2003" may be deleted and in its place "8.11.2003" may bewritten". Paragraph-4 in the Original Election Petition was asfollows: