RAM LAL Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Ram Lal has filed this petition under Articles 226/227 of the Constitution of India for the issuance of a writ or direction for declaring the provisions of sub-rule (3) of Rule 21 of the Haryana Municipal Elections Rules, 1978, as ultra vires of the Constitution of India and for quashing the impugned order dated November 29, 1994 (Annexure P-2) passed by the Returning Officer and order dated December 3, 1994 (annexure P-4) passed by the Deputy Commissioner, Ambala, by which the nomination paper of the petitioner had been rejected by the Returning Officer and revision of the petitioner had been dismissed by the Deputy Commissioner, Ambala.

(2.) Elections to the Municipal Council, Ambala City were held. The petitioner filed his nomination papers from Ward No. 10. Two names were proposed for contesting elections from Ward No. 10. The other candidate was Arun Kumar, respondent No. 4. Scrutiny of nomination papers was held on November 29, 1994. Name of the petitioner was proposed by Sh. O.P. Lamba, Junior Engineer in the Irrigation Department, Haryana, but the same was rejected by the Returning Officer on the ground that the name of the petitioner had been proposed by Sh. O.P. Lamba, who is a Government servant. The petitioner has stated in paragraph 5 of the writ petition that his name was proposed by Sh. O.P. Lamba, who is working as a Junior Engineer in the Irrigation Department, Haryana, after permission from the Executive Engineer, Panchkula, for proposing his name. The petitioner has filed a copy of the order passed by the Executive Engineer, Panchkula dated November 25, 1994, by which Sh. O.P. Lamba had been allowed to propose the name of the petitioner.

(3.) Disqualifications for membership of a Committee have been prescribed under Rule 21 of the Haryana Municipal Elections Rules, 1978 (hereinafter called the Rules'), which reads as under :