J LALTHANGLIANA Vs. LIANSUAMA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By making this application, the applicant, who is respondent No. 1 in the Election Petition No.01/2004, has challenged the very maintainability of the Election Petitioa

(2.) In Election Petition No. 01/2004 aforementioned, the election petitioner has challenged the result of the election declaring respondent No. 1, Sri Liansuama elected to Mizoram Legislative Assembly form No. 28 Phuldungsei (ST) LA Constituency of Mizoram, the declaration of the result having been made on 02.12.2003. The case of the election petitioner being, in brief, thus: Out of the total number of 10,274 votes polled in the said election, the respondent No.1 received 3,788 votes and the election petitioner received 3,765 votes. In the said election, a large number of persons belonging to Bru community residi g intransit comps of Tripura, who, though, according to the election petitioner, not entitled to be enrolled as voters, were, in fact, included in the voters' list and a special polling station for these voters was set up, at Tuipuibari, in order to enable them to cast their vote under No. 28 Phuldungsei (ST) LAC. The names of these ineligible voters were included, according to the election petitioner, in the final Electoral Roll of the Constituency in violation of the various procedural mandates stipulated under the Representation of the Peoples Act, 1950, and the Registration of Elecors Rules, 1960. The election petitioner alleges that at the said special polling station at Tuipuibari, 86 of ineligible Bru voters had cast their votes and out of the votes, so cast, the respondent No. 1 secured 35 votes, while the election petitioner secured 6 votes. Thus, according to the election petitioner, if the alleged void votes of those Bru voters are excluded from the total number of valid votes polled by the respondent No. 1 as well as the election petitioner, the election petitioner would have been declared elected from the said Constituency.

(3.) Heard Mr. SS Dey, learned counsel for the application-respondent No. 1, and Miss. A Baruah, learned counsel, for the election petitioner-opposite party.