KHEM CHAND MEENA Vs. BALU RAM MEENA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) A challenge has been made by the petitioner-returned candidate (hereinafter 'the RC') to the impugned judgment dated 22-11-2016 passed by the Senior Civil Judge, Mahuwa, District Dausa (hereinafter 'the trial court') in election petition No.16/2015 (47/2015) setting aside his election to the post of Sarpanch of gram panchayat Naurangwada, Panchayat Samiti Mahwa, District Dausa.

(2.) The facts of the case are that the election petitioner (EP) filed a petition on 4-2-2015 before the trial court challenging the election of the RC to the post of Sarpanch of village Naurangwada on the ground that votes at the said election were wrongly counted in breach of statutory provisions. Subsequently even while the earlier election petition was pending he filed another election petition on 21-2-2015 on the ground that the RC was charged by the court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Mahuwa in case No.12/2011 for offences under Sections 452 , 323 , 325 , and 341 IPC, in case No.41/2008 (BT No.651/2014) and case No.320/2009 (BT No.609/2014) the court of ACJM Sikarai, and facing trial. He was in terms of Section 19(gg) of the Rajasthan Panchayati Raj Act, 1994 (hereafter 'the Act of 1994') ineligible as the offences for which he was being tried were punishable by more than five years imprisonment, to contest the election.

(3.) The RC's election to the post of Sarpanch was claimed by the EP to be liable to be set aside on the said ground. The election petition first filed on 4-2-2015 was then withdrawn on an application stating that a second election petition had been filed.