BASDEO PRASAD PANJIAR Vs. BRAHMA NAND PRASAD GUPTA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The facts giving rise to this civil revision application may shortly be stated as follows. Lalganj Municipality within the subdivision of Hajipur, district Muzaffarpur, is composed of fifteen municipal commissioners; twelve of whom are elected and three are appointed by the State Government. The election of the Municipal commissioners was held on 28-6-1951. The result of this election was published on 3-10-1951, in the Bihar Gazette of the same date. On 3-7-1952, the State Government appointed three municipal commissioners, namely, (1) the medical officer of Lalganj dispensary, (2) Babu Panchi Lall Yadav and (3) Shri Ramphal Ram. This appointment was duly communicated to the Municipality which reached there on 7-7-1952. On 16-7-1952, a meeting of the Commissioners was held to elect the Chairman at which Basdeo Prasad Panjiar, the present petitioner, was elected as the Chairman. On 23-7-1952, the names of the appointed commissioners were published in the Bihar Gazette of the same date. On 26-7-1952, the proceedings of the meeting held on 16-7-1952, were confirmed. By his order dated 18-9-1952, the District Magistrate of Muzaffarpur passed orders under Section 383 of the Municipal Act, 1922, suspending the operation of the resolution passed by the municipal commissioners of Lalganj Municipality in their meeting held on 16-7-1952. On 28-7-1952, Babu Brahma Nand Prasad Gupta, one of the commissioners of the Municipality, filed an application before the Election Commissioner, Muzaffarpur, for a declaration that the election of Babu Basdeo Prasad Panjiar was null and void. The applicant had in his petition alleged a number of irregularities on the ground of which he claimed the election of Babu Basdeo Prasad Panjiar as the chairman of the Municipality wholly void. The application was opposed by the elected chairman who denied all the allegations made in the application for setting aside his election. It was also asserted on his behalf that the holding of the election on 16-7-1952, was confirmed on 26-7-1952, after the publication of the names of the appointed members in the Bihar Gazette dated 23-7-1952. According to him, the applicant was entitled to no relief.

(2.) The Election Commissioner allowed the application and declared that the election of Babu Basdeo Prasad Panjiar as the Chairman of the Municipality on 16-7-1952, was void as the meeting was not properly constituted on that date. Basdeo Prasad Panjiar, thereafter, moved this Court in revision.

(3.) Learned Counsel for the petitioner submitted before us that the Election Commissioner has erred materially in the exercise of his jurisdiction in declaring the election of the petitioner as the Chairman of the Municipality void. He also submitted that Section 20, Sub-section (2) of the Bihar and Orissa Municipal Act, 1922, did not stand in the way of the municipal commissioners holding the election of the Chairman prior to the actual publication of the names of the appointed members in the Bihar Gazette. Section 20 of the Act runs as follows: