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TMI Blog1968 (8) TMI 198X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... oximately 1600. The petitioners stated in paragraph 5 of the petition that one' V.K. Reddi who had firfiled his nomination paper had been made to withdraw his Candidature by the first respondent on payment of an illegal gratification of a sum of ₹ 10,000/-. This allegation was repeated in paragraph 10. The first respondent was also charged with other corrupt practices m diverse other paragraphs of the petition. The first respondent put in his written statement on 28th June, 1967; the second respondent put in his counter affidavit on June 26, 1967. The issues were settled on July 24, 1967. On August 4, 1967 the petitioners filed Application No. 161/1967 for impleading V.K. Reddi. Thereafter they wanted to withdraw that application when the examination of witnesses had commenced. On August 7, 1967 this application was dismissed. On August 8, 1967 the first respondent 'filed Application No. 169/1967 praying for dismissal of the petition on the ground that although V.K. Reddi had been charged with corrupt practices he had not been impleaded as a party to the petition which was liable to be dismissed under the provisions of section 82(b) of the Representation of the Peo ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... titions drawing in its chain the applicability of section 5 of the Act giving the court the power to admit the same if it was satisfied that the applicant had sufficient cause for not preferring the application within the prescribed period of limitation. The Act as it now stands provides by s. 80A that the court having jurisdiction to try an election petition shall be the High Court. Under s. 81 (1 ) an election petition calling in question any election may be presented on one or more of the grounds specified in sub-s. (1 ) of s. 100 and s. 101 to the High Court by any candidate at such election or any elector within forty-five days, but not earlier than, the date of election of the returned candidate ...... S. 82 runs as follows :-- A petitioner shall join as respondents to his petition-- (a) where the petitioner, in addition to claiming a declaration that the election of all or any of the returned candidates is void, claims a further declaration that he himself or any other candidate has been duly elected, all the contesting candidates other than the petitioner, and where no such further declaration is claimed, all the returned candidates; and (b) any ot ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... orrupt practice has or has not been proved to have been committed at the election and the nature of that corrupt practice as also the names of all persons, if any, who have been proved at the trial to have been guilty of any corrupt practice and the nature of that practice. There is. a proviso to the section which lays down that a person who is not a party to the petition shall not be so named unless he has been given notice to appear before the High Court and to show cause to the contrary. In case he does so, he is further given the right to. cross-examine any witness already examined by the High Court and to give evidence in his defence. Entry 72 of List I of the Seventh Schedule vests in Parliament the exclusive power to make laws with respect to elections to Parliament, to the Legislatures of States and to the offices of President and Vice-President as also the Election Commission. Under Art. 329(b) : Notwithstanding anything in this Constitution-- (a) (b) no election to either House of Parliament or to the House of either House of the Legislature of a State shall be called in question except by an election petition presented to such authority and in such ma ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... re however certain limitations as to the questions which may put to a witness contained in ss. 94 and 95; the returned candidate has a right to recriminate under the provisions of s. 97. The High Court does not pass a decree as in the case of a suit but has to make an order in terms of s. 98 which gives the nature of the orders to be made. The High Court has to communicate the substance of its decision to the Election Commission and the Speaker or the Chairman as the case may be of the House of the People or of the State Legislature. Chapter IV deals with withdrawal and abatement of election petitions. Chapter IV- A deals with appeals from the decisions of the High. Court and Chapter V deals with costs and security for costs. The above brief analysis is sufficient to show that the trial of an election petition is not the same thing as the trial of a suit. As was pointed out by this Court in the case of Kamaraja Nadar v. Kunju Thevat, [1959] S.C.R. 583 at 596 , the provisions of the Act go to show that an election contest is not an action at law or a suit in equity but is a purely statutory proceeding unknown to the common law ...... The Court also emphasised on the peculia ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... hat amendments to a petition in a civil proceeding and the addition of parties to such a proceeding are generally possible subject to the law of limitation. But an election petition stands on a different footing. The trial of such a petition and the powers of the court in respect thereof are all circumscribed by the Act. The Indian Limitation Act of 1963 is an Act to consolidate and amend the law of limitation of suits and other proceedings and for purposes connected therewith. The provisions of this Act will apply to all civil proceedings and some special criminal proceedings which can be taken in a court of law unless the application thereof has been excluded by any enactment: the extent of such application is governed by s. 29(2) of the Limitation Act. In our opinion however the Limitation Act cannot apply to proceedings like an election petition inasmuch as the Representation of the People Act is a complete and self-contained code which does not admit of the introduction of the principles or the provisions of law contained in the Indian Limitation Act. Before the recent amendment of the Representation of the People Act, election petitions had to be presented to the Election ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... chand Baghel, [1964] 6 S.C.R. 129 the main question before this. Court was whether for the purpose of computing the period of 30 days prescribed under s. 116-A(3) of the Act, the provisions, of s. 12 of the Limitation Act could be invoked. The High Court had proceeded on the basis that s. 29(2) applied to the case of appeals under s. 116-A of the Act and on that basis had held that the appeal was within time if it was 'computed after making the deductions permitted by s. 12 of the Limitation Act. There was a good deal of discussion in the case about the scope and extent of s. 29(2). We are not concerned with that in the present appeal. According to the learned Chief Justice and Ayyangar, J. even on the narrowest construction of the words 'different from those prescribed therefor in the first schedule' occurring in the opening part of s. 29(2), the exclusion of time provided for by Art. 12 of the Limitation Act would be permissible in computing the period of limitation for filing the appeal to the High Subba Rao, J. (as he then was) took the view that s. 116-A did not provide an exhaustive and exclusive code of limitation and did not exclude the general provisions of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... book but whereas in the Act of 1951 the discretion was given to the Election Commission to entertain a petition beyond the period fixed if it was satisfied as to the cause for delay no such saving clause is to be found now. The legislature in its wisdom has made the observance of certain formalities and provisions obligatory and failure in that respect can only be visited with a dismissal of the petition. It is to be noted however that even though the Indian Limitation Act, 1963 does not apply to an election petition provisions like sections 9 and 10 of the General Clauses Act, 1897 providing for computation of time which are in pari materia with sections 12( 1 ) and 4 of the Limitation Act would apply to such a petition. The last submission of counsel for the appellants was that the failure to implead V.K. Reddi did not make the election petition liable to dismissal under s. 86 (1 ). It was argued that after V.K. Reddi had withdrawn from contest he was no longer a candidate within the meaning of s. 79(b) or 82(b) of the Act. In our opinion, it is not open to him to argue that point in view of the decision of this Court in Hat Swarup v. Brij Bhushan, [1967] 1 S.C.R. 342. It ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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