JUDGMENT :

1. "Caesar's wife should be above suspicion"

The above phrase come from a story of a Roman Ruler Julius Caesar. A man named Publius Clodius sneaked into a party with the intention of seducing Caesar's wife Pompeia. This lead to Publius's arrest and trial. After trial, Caesar divorced Pompeia. When questioned what this might have had to do with the trial of Publius, Caesar said "my wife ought not even to be under suspicion".

People associated with public figures must not be suspected of being part of any wrong doing and the present case is the one which fall into the aforesaid category.

2. The petitioner, Sarpanch of Grampanchayat Chaundi, Tal.Udgir, Dist.Latur, came to be disqualified from her post by respondent No.3 Collector on 18.02.2021 and upon an appeal preferred by her to the Additional Divisional Commissioner, Aurangabad, the appeal came to be dismissed on 29.06.2021. Being aggrieved by the action of disqualification at the hands of the Collector and the same being confirmed by the Appellate Authority, the petitioner has approached this Court by filing the present writ petition, in which she seek relief of quashing and setting aside of the impugned orders and her reinstatement on the post of Sarpanch.

3. While issuing notice in the said writ petition, the original record and proceedings was called for and it was indicated by this Court that the writ petition shall be heard finally at the stage of admission.

I have heard the learned Counsel Shri. R.R.Imale, for the petitioner, Shri S.G.Jadhavar for respondent No.5, Shri U.L.Momale for respondent No.6 and Shri K.B.Jadhavar, AGP for respondent Nos. 1 to By the consent of the parties, the petition is taken up for final hearing. Hence Rule. Rule is made returnable forthwith.

4. The election of Gram Panchayat Chaundi was held on 07.10.2017 and the petitioner came to be directly elected as a Sarpanch on a post which was reserved for OBC Women.

In the month of October 2020, respondent No.6 preferred a complaint to the Collector, Latur alleging that the petitioner in her capacity as Sarpanch, has individually benefited her husband Babu Pawar and his brother Ramchandra Pawar R/o Chaundi by allotting work to them and further by disbursing a cheque from the account of Gram Panchayat in their favour in connivance with the Gram Sevak of Chaundi. In order to substantiate the said allegation, the bank statement of Latur District Central Co-operative Branch Udgir was also annexed to the complaint alongwith the cash book extract of Gram Panchayat Chaundi. By referring to the said documents, it was alleged that the Sarpanch in connivance with the Gramsevak Chaundi, got the work of Gram Panchayat executed through her husband and brother of husband and accordingly paid them the remuneration. This has resulted into her disqualification u/s. 14(1)(g) of the Maharashtra Village Panchayats Act, and she is liable to be disqualified from the post of Member, resulting into her dis-entitlement to hold the post of Sarpanch.

5. Upon the complaint being preferred, the petitioner denied the said allegation lavelled against her by specifically pleading that the complaint is preferred as a counter attack to her accusations against the Chief Executive Officer, Zilla Parishad, Latur on 07.01.2019 and in the reply, she specifically stated that her husband has no connection with the Gram Panchayat, but a bogus cheque issued in his name came to be encashed in his account in District Central Co-operative Bank, Nulgir Branch. But this fact was not known to her husband and has come to her knowledge only for the first time when the complaint is made. She responded by stating that the said cheque carrying number #005175# came to be encashed in her husband's account on 21.09.2020 but till date, he has not withdrawn the amount and this make it apparently clear that the whole exercise is undertaken to disqua