DHANNA SINGH Vs. DEPUTY COMMISSIONER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Elections of the Panches and Sarpanch of the Gram Panchayat of Ahar-Haji Khanpur, Tehsil and district Hoshiarpur, took place on June 26, 1972. The election programme was published on June 21, 1972, as has been found by the prescribed authority trying the election petition. The petitioner and respondent 3 filed the nomination papers for the office of Sarpanch on June 25, 1972, which was accepted. The polling took place on June 26, 1972. The result of the polling was that each of the two candidates got 80 votes and the result was announced by drawing the lot and the petitioner was declared elected. Against his election, respondent 3 filed an election petition before the prescribed authority. One of the grounds of challenge to the election was that the election programme had not been published at least seven days before the date fixed for the filing of the nomination papers. The programme having been published on June 21, 1972, there was clear violation of the mandatory provisions of rule 3 of the Gram Panchayat (Election) Rules, 1960. There was no allegation made in the election petition that as a result of non-compliance with the provisions of rule 3 ibid, the election of the returned candidate had been materially affected. Section 13-O of the Punjab Gram Panchayat Act, 1952 , prescribes the grounds for setting aside the elections and the relevant part of the Section reads as under :-

(2.) In similar circumstances where the petitioner had not alleged or proved that the receipt of the votes of co-opted members, whose co-option was later on set aside, had effected the result of the election of the President and Vice-President of the Municipal Committee, which was a statutory requirement, Sharma, J., refused to set aside the election of the President and Vice-President vide Tek Chand v. The State of Punjab and others, 1973 75 PunLR 635. I am supported by that judgment in the view I have taken.

(3.) The result is that this petition is accepted and the impugned order of the prescribed authority is set aside. In the circumstances, I leave the parties to bear their own costs. Petition accepted.