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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
R. M. SAVANT, J.
Mrs. Sulabha Vijay Lokhande - Petitioner
Versus
State of Maharashtra - Respondents.
WRTI PETITION NO.17343 OF 2014
Decided On : 18th July 2014
Maharashtra Municipal Council, Nagar Panchayat and Industrial Township Act, 1965 - Section 63(2-B) - Formation of party. - Where in support of Form III, filled by 9 independent Councillors, petitioner filed an affidavit stating that she is member of party with 8 other Councillors, therefore Collector justified in concluding that petitioner is member of party. - In so far as the issue No. 3 is concerned, in view of the legal fiction which is attached to Section 63(2-B) of the said Act by which the post-poll aghadi like PVAMPP is deemed to be a pre-poll aghadi, the Collector held that the rigors of the Disqualification Act would apply even in respect of other matters of the House and not restricted to the nomination to the Subject Committees. In so far as the first 2 issues are concerned, the findings of fact which have been arrived at by the Collector can be said to be on the basis of the material on record and the petitioner in Court’s view has not been able to dent the said findings in any manner.
Maharashtra Municipal Council, Nagar Panchayat and Industrial Township Act, 1965 - Section 63(2-B) - Formation of a party. - Where registration of PVAMPP party, a post poll alliance was published in official Gazette therefore decision of Collector holding that PVAMPP party established, is justified. - It is required to be noted that the petitioner herein did not choose to lead oral evidence though it was her case that the decision which was taken to establish the aghadi comprising of 9 independent councillors, had not fructified and though it was also her case that Form III and the affidavit made by her in support of the said Form III were misused by the respondent No. 3. In so far as the first issue is concerned, viz. establishment of the PVAMPP, the Collector having regard to Form III being filled in by the 9 independent councillors, Form I having filled in by the respondent No. 3 who was elected as a leader, which was submitted to the Collector, and taking into consideration the entry made in Form IV which is a register wherein entry is made as regards PVAMPP and also taking into consideration the fact that the same has also been gazetted, held that the PVAMPP has been established and registered on 29.12.2011 and thereafter published in the official Gazette on 1.9.2012. The Collector in arriving at the said conclusion did not countenance the submissions made on behalf of the petitioner against the establishment and registration of the PVAMPP which submissions can only be said to be by way of pinpricking and not on any substantial grounds.
In respect of the said Issue No. 1 it would be apposite to refer to the judgment of the Apex Court in Sadashiv Patil ’s case, 2001 (1) All MR 282 (SC) wherein consequences of registration and the registration being gazetted are spelt out.
The politico-legal doctrine of disqualification by defection has been percolated to the elections of local authorities in Maharashtra by enacting the Act. The Act proposes to encourage the elections being fought by group of persons bringing themselves together so as to have a common purpose and by contesting election on a common symbol propagating the principles and purpose with that group proposes to administer the local authority if returned to power by the electorate. Such group of persons having a common ideology though not necessarily belonging to a political party of State or National level may form themselves into a party, the immediate purpose whereof is to set up candidates for election to the local authority. The collective name assigned to such group of persons is an Aghadi or front. On the elections being accomplished, a Municipal Council comes into existence which includes elected Councillors belonging to any political party, Aghadi or front. Once a candidate set up by a political party, Aghadi or front is declared elected he shall be fictionally deemed to be belonging to the political party or Aghadi or front by which he was set up as a candidate at the elections. He has no option in the matter. The elected Councillors of a particular political party, Aghadi or front constitute a Municipal Party identified with any political party or Aghadi or front by which the candidature of such Councillors was sponsored. The Municipal Party gets a statutory recognition. Rule 3 contemplates a leader of such Municipal Party being elected or appointed who shall furnish within 30 days from the date of its formation a statement in writing in Form I being filed with the Collector wherein the names of members of such party(which means a municipal party) shall be mentioned. The statement shall also mention the names and designation of the members of such party authorised to communicate with the Collector. A copy of the rules and regulations (whether known as such or a constitution or by any other name) of the Municipal Party and of the parent party, Aghadi or front are to be filed with the Collector. There is a system of crosscheck provided by the Rules. Not only a statement by the leader of Municipal Party is to be filed under Rule 3(l)(a), every Councillor in relation to Municipal Party shall, before he has taken his seat, furnish a statement of particulars and declaration in Form III. The information so furnished shall be published in the Maharashtra Government Gazette and subject to rectification of such discrepancy as may be pointed out and necessary corrigendum if necessary being published in the Gazette, the information shall be maintained in the records of the Collector in a register in From IV under Rule 5. In this manner the evidence of formation of a Municipal Party comes into existence and any doubts or disputes relating to formation of a particular Municipal Party and the members thereof along with the requisite particulars furnished, filed, notified and entered in the register are ruled out.
1. Rule, with the consent of the learned counsel for the parties made returnable forthwith and heard.
2. The parties are before this Court in view of the unseating of the Petitioner as a Municipal Councillor under the Maharashtra Local Authority Members Disqualification Act, 1986. The challenge raised in the above Petition is to the order dated 19/06/2014 passed by the Collector, Satara by which order the issues which were framed by this Court in the earlier round of litigation being Writ Petition Nos. 1655 of 2014 and 2751 of 2014 were answered and Exhibit 26 filed by the Respondent No.3 herein came to be allowed.
3. The facts giving rise to the filing of the above Petition can be stated thus The elections to the Municipal Council Panchagani were held some time in December 2011. In the said elections 17 Councillors, who had contested the elections as independent candidates, were elected, which including the Petitioner and the Respondent No.3. Out of the said 17 Councillors, 9 Councillors which including the Petitioner and the Respondent No.3 had decided to come together and form a postpoll aghadi known as Panchagani Vikas Aghadi, Panchagani, resulting into Panchagani Vikas Aghadi Municipal Party Panchagani (in short the "PVAMPP”). The said 9 Councillors had filled up Form III in terms of Rule 4 of the Maharashtra Local Authority Members Disqualification Rules, 1987, (the Disqualification Rules for short) and had elected the Respondent No.3 as a party leader. The Respondent No.3 in her capacity as the Cader has accordingly filed Form I. The said forms were accordingly submitted to the Collector, Satara who had registered the aghadi as Panchagani Vikas Municipal Aghadi Municipal Party, Panchagani (PVAMPP) on 29/12/2011, and same was thereafter published in the official gazette on 9/1/2012 as having been established under Section 63(2B) of the Maharashtra Municipal Council Nagar Panchayat and Industrial Township Act, 1965 (the said Act for short).
4. The instant dispute has its origins in the elections which took place for the post of VicePresident on 22/5/2013. It appears that the Respondent No.3 herein as a leader of PVAMPP had issued a whip that the Councillors who constituted the said PVAMPP have to vote for one Laxman Maruti Parte. The allegation against the Petitioner is that she avoided to accept the whip and had adopted various modalities for the same including switching off her mobile phone during the relevant period. It is further alleged against the Petitioner that in defiance of the whip, the Petitioner voted for the opposition candidate resulting in the defeat of the said Laxman Maruti Partse. After the said elections to the post of VicePresident were over, the Respondent No.3 herein, who as indicated above is the leader of the PVAMPP filed an Application under the Act known as the Maharashtra Local Authority Members Disqualification Act, 1986 (for brevity sake referred to as "the Disqualification Act.). The said Application was numbered as Complaint No.2 of 2013. By the said Application, the Respondent No.3 had sought disqualification of the Petitioner under Section 3(1)(a) of the Disqualification Act on the ground that by her conduct, she has voluntarily given up her membership of the PVAMPP, and that by defiance of the Whip, she stands disqualified under Section 3(1)(b) of the Disqualification Act. In the said Complaint the allegations in support of the case under Sections 3(1)(a) and 3(1)(b) of the said Act were set out. The sum and substance of the allegations was that the Petitioner by her conduct of avoiding to receive whip and obstructing the members of the PVAMPP has voluntarily given up her membership of PVAMPP It was further alleged that the Petitioner, by coming to the venue of voting in the car of the opposition candidate as also joining the victory procession after the results were declared, had defied the whip and therefore stood disqualified under Sections 3(1)(a) and 3(1)(b) of the said Ac
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