S. 80 of the Civil Procedure Code is not applicable to election petitions under S. 204 of the West Bengal Panchayat Act.

( 1 ) AN application raising an Election Dispute under S. 204 of the West Bengal Panchayat Act (hereinafter referred to as the said (Act)) which was registered as Misc. Case No. 69 of 1983 being dismissed by the learned Munsif, Purulia. By an order dt. Nov. 28, 1983, the applicant has challenged the said order in a revisional application. The revisional application is being heard as a contested application.

( 2 ) THE petitioner contested the election for the post of Chatumadar Gram Panchayat Prodhan held on Aug. 10, 1983, but on the declared result thereof lost to opposite party No. 1. On Aug. 20, 1983, the petitioner instituted the aforesaid Election Dispute case by filing an application under S. 204 of the said Act in the court of the learned Munsif, Purulia who is the tribunal constituted under the Act for adjudication of such a dispute. The opposite party appeared and raised a preliminary objection that since no notice under S. 80 (1) of the Civil P. C. had been served upon the Government and the Polling Officer nor any leave had in the alternative been obtained, the election petition is not maintainable. Such an objection having been upheld by the learned Munsif, he has dismissed the election petition without going into the merits. Feeling aggrieved the petitioner has moved this court in revision and the only point which arises for our consideration is as to whether an applicant under S. 204 of the said Act is required to comply with S. 80 of the Code in the matter of preferring an election petition.

( 3 ) MR. Bhunia appearing in support of this revisional application has contended that the election case not being a suit, S. 80 of the Code can have no application. Moreover according to Mr. Bhunia in the disputed proceeding, all the relief that has been claimed is against the opposite party No. 1 and none against the Government nor against any public servant, hence S. 80 of the Code even on its terms can have no application. The learned Advocate for the opposite party has contested the points thus raised by Mr. Bhunia.

( 4 ) ON a careful consideration of the legal position, we are unable to sustain the view taken by the learned Munsif in this case. The learned Munsif appears to have, taken the view that when the provisions of the Code had been adopted by the Rules framed under the Act and had been made applicable to trial of election petition, the petitioner is not entitled to file an election petition without due compliance with the requirement of S. 80 of the Code. The learned Munsif has gone wrong in not appreciating the real extent to which the Code had been adopted.

( 5 ) THE Civil P. C. no doubt primarily prescribes rules of procedure. But those rules are comprehensive enough to cover all stages since before institution of a suit till appeal, revision and execution of decrees obtained therein. S. 80 of the Code prescribes a rule of procedure which has to be fulfilled prior to the institution of the suit. It in effect provides that advance copy of the plaint should be served on the defendant and no suit should be instituted in Court until the expiry of two months after such service; (State of Seraikella v. Union of India, AIR 1951 SC 253 ). It does not provide for a procedure applicable to trials as such but prescribes a pre-trial procedure to be fulfilled in respect of a special category of suits.

( 6 ) IT is not disputed that the Civil P. C. is applicable to suit coming within its purview and it would not be applicable to suits or proceedings under special statutes unless the said statute adopts the Code and makes it applicable thereto and to the extent it is so adopted. Here in the present case S. 264 of the said Act confers right on specified persons to dispute the declared results of an election and prescribes the forum and the procedure for the adjudication of such a dispute. This section reads as follows :-"204. (1) If any dispute arises as to the validity of an election under this Act, an