( 1 ) SINCE in these two applications the elections of Bilimora Municipality and Bulsar Municipality held in October 1980 have been challenged mainly on the ground of breach of the relevant provisions of the Gujarat Municipalities Act 1963 or the Gujarat Municipalities Election Rules 1964 pertaining to the preparation of electoral rolls we intend to dispose of these two applications by this common order. Before we address ourselves to the contentions urged by the respective petitioners it would be profitable to set out a few relevant facts of both these applications so that the contentions can be appreciated in proper context.

( 2 ) PETITIONERS of Special Civil Application No. 2964/80 are the defeated candidates in the selections of Bilimora Municipality and they seek to challenge the elections to wards Nos. 2 6 7 8 and 9 of the said Municipality. Respondents Nos. 4 to 6 are elected candidates from ward No. 2; respondents Nos. 7 to 9 are elected from ward No. 6; respondents Nos. 10 and 11 are elected from ward No. 7; respondents Nos. 12 to 14 are elected from ward No. 8 and respondents Nos. 15 to 17 are elected from wax No. 9. It should be stated that respondent No. 4 was also elected from ward No. 9 besides ward No. 2. He therefore resigned from ward No. 2 and therefore respondent No. 18 was elected in his place from ward No. 2. According to the election programme declared by the Collector Bulsar-respondent No 2 herein in exercise of his powers under rule 7 (1)of the Gujarat Municipalities Election Rules 1964 (hereinafter referred to as the Election Rules) the date for publication of the notice about the list of voters was specified as 20/08/1980. The last date for filing nomination papers under Rule 8 was 20/09/1980 The scrutiny of the nomination papers as required under Rule 10 was to be held on 22/09/1980 The last date for withdrawal under Rule 21 (1) was 24/09/1980 The last date for retirement from the contest under Rule 12 (1) was 1/10/1980 and the preparation and publication of the list of validly nominated candidates was 3/10/1980 The date of the poll as fixed under Rule 25 was 12/10/1980 and the counting of votes under Rule 35 was to be held on 13/10/1980

( 3 ) THE list of voters was prepared and finally published by the Chief Officer of the said Municipality on 18/08/1980 However the said Chief Officer be his order of 11/10/1980 (hereinafter referred to as the impugned order) only a day prior to the date of the poll effected certain changes in the lists of voters of wards Nos. 2 6 7 8 and 9 the elections to which are under challenge in this application. By that order of 11/10/1980 what the Chief Officer did was that he omitted specified voters from one ward and included them in another ward and also deleted the names of certain voters from the said wards. The main grievance of the petitioners of this petition is that so amendment deletion or addition of any entry in the lists of voters for a ward can be legally effected between the publication of the notice about the lists of voters under Rule 4 that is 20/08/1980 and the date of the poll that is 12/10/1980 since sec. 9 (5) of the Gujarat Municipalities Act 1963 (hereinafter referred to as the Act) prohibits such amendment deletion or addition of any entry in the list of voters for a ward during the period between such date as the State Government may by general or special order notify in this behalf and the date of the completion of any concerned election in the ward. It is common ground that the State Government has by a special order issued in the Panchayat Housing and Urban Development Department dated 6/03/1979 notified the date on which the list of voters consisting of both its parts is finally published in accordance with the provision of sub-sec. (7) of sec. 9 as the date for purposes of the said sub-sec. (5 ). Inasmuch as the Chief Officer by his impugned order deleted 130 voters from ward No. 6; 181 voters from ward No. 9 and about 4a voters f