KARU LALL Vs. FIDA HUSSAIN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal relates to election to the Bihar State Legislative Assembly from the Jehanabad double-member constituency. Fida Hussain, respondent No. 1 has been declared elected to the general seat, and Mahabir Chaudhari, respondent No. 2, has been declared elected to the seat reserved for scheduled castes. Karu Lall, petitioner No. 1, is an elector, and Shakti Kumar, petitioner No. 2, was one of the candidates for election. Mr. A. K. Saran, the only member of the Election Tribunal at Gaya, has, by his order dated the 15th January, 1958, dismissed the two petitioners' election petition for declaring the election of the returned candidates to be void, and hence they have preferred this appeal.

(2.) Out of the sixteen candidates, nine sought election to the general seat and seven to the reserved, seat. I need not mention all their names but I give below the names of some of the candidates with the party to which they belonged, the seat for which they were candidate and the number of votes which they secured. <FRM>JUDGEMENT_556_AIR(PAT)_1960Html1.htm</FRM>

(3.) The petitioners' case is that the nomination papers of Ramanand Sharma, Mahanand Singh and Fida Hussain were all improperly accepted because they were disqualified for one reason or another, and that the result of the election has been materially affected by such improper acceptance. It is also their case that the returned candidates have, by themselves pr through their agents, been guilty of corrupt practices Respondents Nos. 1 and 2 have, oil the other hand, denied these allegations.