PRAMOD BAGRI Vs. ELECTION COMMISSION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Prayer in this writ petition is for setting aside order dtd. 18/5/2022 (Annexure P5) passed by the Principal Secretary, Election Commission of India whereby petitioner has been declared to be disqualified for being chosen as and for being a member of either House of the Parliament or Legislative Assembly or Legislative Council of the State or Union Territory for a period of three years from the date of order in terms of Sec. 10A of The Representation of the People Act, 1951 (hereinafter referred to as an 'Act').

(2.) It is submitted that petitioner, who is a resident of District Hisar contested the General Election for Legislative Assembly, Hisar - 52 held in the year 2019. Elections were held and result declared on 24/10/2019.

(3.) Admittedly, petitioner did not submit details of the expenditure incurred by him in terms of Sec. 77 of the Act. It is submitted that the concerned register related to the expenditure incurred by the petitioner alongwith original bills of expenditure, pass book relating to the account held by the petitioner of the Union Bank, Aadhar card, voter card, photographs and photocopies alongwith other documents were somehow lost on 14/11/2019. In this respect, petitioner is stated to have lodged a Lost Property Report with Police Station Hisar Civil Lines on 14/11/2019. It is further stated that petitioner immediately on 19/11/2019 itself filed an application before the District Election Officer, Hisar for non-submission of election related expenses due to the documents being lost.