KAMLESHWARI SINGH Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS Court is deeply unhappy at the manner in which the election process for the local bodies are being conducted by the Field Officers. The writ petition in hand is a case in point where the Returning Officer seems to have acted not only quite unreasonably but also patent disregard of the statutory provisions and the instructions issued by the State Election Commissioner.

(2.) THE petitioner filed his nomination from Dhoraiya Middle Constituency for being elected as one of the Members of the Banka Zila Parishad. His nomination was proposed by a certain Mansoor Khan. In course of scrutiny, the Returning Officer rejected the nomination paper on the sole ground that the proposer, in the column for his name, had apart from mentioning his own name, had also given the name of his father. This, according to the Returning Officer, was not warranted having regard to Form 6 in which the nomination paper was to be filed and this mistake made the nomination itself liable to be rejected.

(3.) HOWEVER , if the proposer, as in this case, gave the name of his father, it was only to further confirm his identity and it was not going to affect the election process in any conceivable manner.