SAWALIA BEHARI LALL VERMA Vs. TRIBIKRAM DEO NARAIN SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal is directed against an order dated the 10th August 1963 of the Election Tribunal, Patna, in Election Case No. 354 of 1962. The appellant put in an election petition questioning the validity of the election of respondent Sri Tribikram Deo Narain Singh, respondent No. 1, to the Bihar Legislative Council. The petition was dismissed by the Tribunal by order dated the 5th of December, 1962. An application was filed under Order 9, Rule 9, Code of Civil Procedure, for restoration of the election case. The petition for restoration was also dismissed by the Election Tribunal on the 10th August 1963. The appellant feeling aggrieved by the order dismissing the application for restoration has come up to this Court.

(2.) A few dates, which are relevant, may be set out here. The election petition was filed on the 11th of June 1962 and the Election Commission sent the case for trial to the Election Tribunal, Muzaffarpur, on the 11th of July, 1962. It was received in the office of the Tribunal on the 19th of July 1962. The Member, Election Tribunal, Muzaffarpur, however, considered it improper to take up the trial of the case because he knew both the parties. Accordingly, it was transferred to the file of the Election Tribunal, Patna, on the 30th of July 1962. The Tribunal fixed 16th of August 1962 as the date for appearance of the parties. On the 24th of September 1962, written statement was filed by respondent No. 1, and on the 27th of September 1962, issues were settled and the parties were directed by the Tribunal to file their documents and the list of witnesses before the 6th of November 1962. The appellant, however, prayed for further time to file list of witnesses as also documents, and the Tribunal granted time till the 8th of November 1962. On that date, the appellant prayed that two issues should be taken for trial as preliminary issues, but the Tribunal rejected the prayer for piecemeal trial on the 13th of November 1962, 17th of November 1962 was fixed for the hearing of the election petition. On that date, the appellant made a prayer for grant of one week's time to enable him to move the High Court against the order of the 13th November 1962, so that the further proceedings of the election case might be stayed by the High Court. The Tribunal granted the prayer and time was allowed till the 21st of November 1962.

(3.) It so happened, however, that even on the 21st of November 1962, a further application for a fortnight's time to take steps for the trial of the election case was filed. This petition was taken up on the 22nd November 1962, but as no one was present on behalf of the appellant to move that petition, it was rejected. The Tribunal, however, granted time to the parties till the 26th of November 1962 to file their respective lists of witnesses as also their documents. On that date, two petitions were filed on behalf of the appellant; one contained the prayer that the Tribunal should hold the hearing at Muzaffarpur as most of the witnesses belonged to that district and as such trial of the election case in that district would be more convenient to the appellant. That application was, however, rejected. On the 27th of November 1962, the prayer for serving interrogatories on the respondent, contained in another application, was also rejected and the case was ordered to be taken up peremptorily on the 5th December, 1962. On the 5th of December 1962, however, a further application was filed on behalf of the appellant for time on the ground that the order of the 27th November 1962 rejecting the prayer for serving of interrogatories on the respondent made on behalf of the appellant was communicated to the lawyer of the appellant on the 1st of December 1962, and accordingly an application for certified copy of the order was made on that date. The certified copy of the order was made over to the counsel for the appellant on the 3rd December 1962. There-after arrangement was made for filing an application in revision in the High Court on the 5th of December 1962, which was the date for hearing of the election petition. The Tribunal, however, rejected the prayer for further adjournment giving reasons in an elaborate order, characterising the prayer as unjust and intended merely to delay the disposal of the election petition. The application for restoration, which was filed on the 20th December 1962, was too, as already stated, dismissed by the Tribunal.