IN THE HIGH COURT OF ORISSA AT CUTTACK ELPET No.29 of 2024 Jagabandhu Das (Dead) … Election Petitioner Mr. Sohan Mishra, Advocate (Counsel for the Applicant in I.As)

-versus-

Sanjib Kumar Mallick and … Respondents others Mr. G.K. Agarwal, Sr. Adv.

Assisted by Ms. S. Srivastava, Adv.

(For Res. No.1)

CORAM: JUSTICE SANJAY KUMAR MISHRA

ORDER

09.10.2025 Order No.

I.A. No.80 of 2025, I.A. No.81 of 2025 &

I.A. No.82 of 2025

24. This matter is taken up through hybrid mode.

2. Heard Mr. Sohan Mishra, learned Counsel for the Applicant, who prays to be substituted in place of the deceased Election Petitioner so also Mr. Agarwal, learned Senior Counsel, who represents the Respondent No.1.

3. In I.A. No.80 of 2025, a prayer has been made to substitute the Applicant-Petitioner in place of late Jagabandhu Das (the Original Election Petitioner).

4. In I.A. No.81 of 2025, a prayer has been made to condone the delay of 18 days in filing the application for substitution under Section 112(3) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, shortly, ‘the R.P. Act’.

5. Similarly, in I.A. No.82 of 2025, a prayer has been made to set aside the abatement as against the deceased Election Petitioner.

6. As required under Section 112(3) of the R.P. Act, the Application for substitution ought to have been filed within 14 days from the date of Gazette Notification dated 19.05.2025, published by the Director, Printing, Stationery and Publication, Odisha. However, I.A. No.80 of 2025 has been filed after about 32 days of such notification, which is after 18 days beyond the permissible limitation period of 14 days.

7. I.A. No.81 of 2025 has been filed to condone the delay taking a stand there in that, the Applicant was daily checking the Odisha https://egazette.odisha, gov.in/ the website e-gazette, i.e., more particularly the Extraordinary Gazette Archival from the High Court of Orissa column, to access the Gazette Notification which was ordered to be published at the earliest by this Court. The said Gazette Notification was not uploaded/published in the said Gazette website till 17.06.2025. On 18.06.2025, when the Applicant opened the Odisha e-gazette website, it was on that day the gazette notification was found to be uploaded. On the said date, the Applicant came to know about the fact regarding the gazette notification issued by the Registrar(Judicial) of this Court . Hence, the Applicant could not file the substitution application on or before 02.06.2025 due to non-publication of the gazette notification in Odisha e.gazzette website.

8. Mr. Mishra, learned Counsel for the Applicant submits, though the Applicant belongs to the same constituency and one of the valid voters, who was well aware of the death of the Election Petitioner, so also the order passed by this Court dated 12.05.2025, vide which Office was directed to take necessary steps to publish the fact regarding death of the Election Petitioner in the Official Gazette of the State Government at the earliest, he was waiting for such notification, to be made on the official website of the State Government i.e. e-gazettes.

8.1. Knowing about such order, the Applicant was consistently keeping track of the official website of the State Government so far as publications of e-Gazettes are concerned. The Gazette Notification published by the Director, Printing, Stationery and Publication, Odisha dated 19.05.2025 was e-Gazetted on 18.06.2025. Thereafter, the Applicant promptly filed the present application for substitution of the deceased Election Petitioner on 20^th June, 2025. In fact, there is no delay in filing the application for substitution, as required under Section 112(3) of the R.P. Act.

9. Though, it has not been pleaded so in any of the I.As., during hearing, Mr. Mishra, learned Counsel for the Applicant-Petitioner, files photocopies of the Circular No.11434/OE, Bhubaneswar dated 02.04.2024 of the Government of Odisha, Home Department along with a copy of the Circular No.1210/Com. Bhubaneswar dated 14.03.2024 of t