A substitute candidate must meet the same nomination requirements as an approved candidate, including proposer signatures, and the rejection of the petitioner's nomination was justified.

ORDER :

The petitioner has filed the present petition seeking direction to the respondent Nos.1 to 3 to accept his candidature as an official and recognized candidate of the Indian National Congress (hereinafter referred as “INC”) and allot the recognized election symbol to contest the General Election of House of People from Indore – 26 Constituency.

Facts of the case in short are as under:

2. The Election Commission of India notified the General Election of House of People vide notification dated 16.03.2024 and issued an election program which is reproduced below:

3. The INC issued a form-A in favour of its State President on 21.03.2024 to issue a form-B in the names of an approved candidate as well as substitute candidate of INC. Shri Jitu Patwari, President M.P. National Congress Committee has issued a form-B in the name of respondent No.4 as an approved candidate and in the name of petitioner as substituted candidate. The respondent No.4 and petitioner both submitted their nomination form on or before 25.04.2024. On 20.06.2024 all the forms were scrutinized by respondent No.3. The respondent No.3 has rejected the nomination form of the petitioner on the ground, firstly, that the form of approved candidate has been accepted and 10 candidates have not signed as proposer his name. The petitioner did not object to the aforesaid rejection of his candidature.

4. On 29.04.2024 the respondent No.4 being an approved candidate has withdrawn his nomination form to contest the Parliamentary Election. The petitioner immediately submitted a representation to declare him approved candidate and allot an official symbol of INC. Now the petitioner is before this Court seeking following relief:

7.1. That, the instant writ petition may kindly be allowed and the respondent no. 1 to 3 may kindly be directed to accept the candidature of the petitioner as an official and recognized candidate of Indian National Congress by allotting the recognized election symbol of INC to the petitioner, enabling the petitioner to contest the ensuing general election of the House of People from Indore-26 constituency;

7.2. That, the respondent no. 1 to 3 may kindly be directed to consider and decide the pending representation dated 29.04.2024 filed by the petitioner, by passing a reasoned and speaking order thereon;

7.3. That, the cost of the present writ petition may also be awarded to the petitioner and any other relief which this Hon'ble Court may consider appropriate, may also be granted in favour of the petitioner.

5. Shri Vibhor Khandelwal, learned counsel for the petitioner submits that as per Proviso to sub-Section (1) of Section 33 of The Representation of People Act, 1951 (hereinafter referred as “Act of 1951”) that a candidate not set up by recognized political party shall not be deemed to be duly nominated for election from the constituency unless the nomination paper is subscribed by 10 proposers being elector of the constituency, therefore, action of the Returning Officer rejecting his nomination his nomination on 25.04.2024 may be correct because at that time the petitioner was not approved candidate of the INC as his form was not signed by 10 proposers but in view of Proviso to sub-Section (5) of Section 36 of Act of 1951, the Returning Officer ought to have given one day time to the petitioner to get 10 approver and examine the nomination form next day.

6. Shri Khandelwal, learned counsel further submits that as per form-B, there are 2 stages on which the substitute candidate can be stepped into the shoe of app