GAYATRI DEVI Vs. SUMAN DEVI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ petition is directed against the order dtd. 20/4/2022 passed by learned Election Tribunal (learned Additional Civil Judge No.15), Chaksu, Headquarters Jaipur Metropolitan-I in Election Petition No.4/2021 CIS No.4/2021 CNR No.RJJM270014562021 whereby, while allowing the election petition filed by the respondent no.1/election petitioner, election of the petitioner as Member, Zila Parishad, Ward No.22, District Jaipur, has been set aside, the election has been held to be void, she has been held to be disqualified and the respondent no.1, the election petitioner, has been declared to be the elected Member from the Ward No.22.

(2.) The relevant facts in brief are that the respondent no.1 filed an election petition under Sec. 43 of the Rajasthan Panchayati Raj Act, 1994 (for brevity-'the Act of 1994') read with Rule 80 of the Rajasthan Panchayati Raj (Election) Rules, 1994 (for brevity- 'the Rules of 1994') assailing the election of the petitioner as Zila Parishad Member from Ward No.22, Jaipur on the premise that electoral roll of the Ward No.22 contained electors from certain villages of Ward No.23 and 24 as per the delimitation carried out prior to election. It was contended that had the electors from Ward No. 23 and 24 not been permitted to cast their vote in the Ward No.22 and their votes are excluded, the election petitioner would have won the election by 570 votes. It was, therefore, prayed that election of the petitioner as Ward Member be declared void, result of the election be cancelled and the election petitioner be declared as the elected candidate.

(3.) The petitioner in her reply to the election petition submitted that the election was held as per the final electoral roll of the year 2021 published on 19/4/2021 and none of the voters outside the electoral roll prepared for the Ward No.22 was permitted to cast vote in the election.