PRAVASINI JENA Vs. MAYARANI BISWAS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Smt. Mayarani Biswas (Petitioner in WP(C) No. 693 of 2005) filed Election Petition under Section 31 of the Orissa Grama Panchayat Act, 1964 (in short 'G.P. Act') challenging to the Notification by which Smt. Pravasini Jena (Petition in WP(C) No. 10865 of 2004) was declared elected as the Sarpanch of Kantalabai Grama Panchayat. The result was so declared on 28.2.2002. That Election Petition was registered as Election Dispute No. 19 of 2002 in the Court of Civil Judge (Junior Division), Khurda. For the sake of convenience, in this judgment Smt. Mayarani Biswas is referred to as the Election Petitioner and Pravasini Jena as the Opp. Party.

(2.) IN the Election Petition, petitioner challenged to the election of the Opposite Party as the Sarapanch, precisely on three grounds, viz., (i) Pravasini gave birth to the 3rd child, i.e. the daughter Ranu @ Madhusmita Jena on 6.5.1997, i.e. after the expiry of the cut off date on 21.4.1995, as provided in Section 25 (i)(v) of the G.P. Act; (ii) The Opp. Party does not belong to 'Katia' caste but she belongs to 'Khatia' caste and that the latter is not a Scheduled Caste as per the Presidential Order for the State of Orissa under Article 341 of the Constitution of India and therefore, she should not have been permitted to contest from the reserved constituency of Kantalabai Grama Panchayat; and (iii) She is unable to read and write Oriya, which is a disqualification under Section 11 (b) of the G.P. Act. She further stated that her aforesaid objection, for no good reason, was rejected by the Election Officer who scrutinized the nomination paper. She described the Opposite Party as Pravasini Jena @ Ranta Prava Jena, wife of Bhagirathi Jena @ Kashinath Jena. The Opp. Party denied to all such allegations and stated that she belongs to village Jhatinuagaon and not Jhatinuagaon Colony and the latter is a separate village situated at a distance of about 2 Kms. from village Jhatinuagaon. She also denied to the allegation that she begot a third child in the year 1997 or that she was incapable of reading and writing Oriya. She also stated that she belongs to 'Katia' caste and in proof of that a Caste Certificate has been granted in her husband's name describing him to be a member of Scheduled Caste.

(3.) ON assessment of evidence on record, learned Civil Judge found that Opposite Party belongs to 'Khatia' caste and therefore she is not a member of Scheduled Caste; that she is Pravasini Jena @ Ratna Prava Jena and accordingly mother of three children having given birth to the third chile in 1997 and that, petitioner did not prove that Opposite Party is not capable of reading and writing Oriya. Because of the aforesaid findings relating to the caste and number of children, learned Civil Judge declared election of the Opposite Party as illegal and void. He further held that no other candidate being contesting the case, petitioner was declared as the Sarapanch in place of Opposite Party.