1 Shri Mustafa Shahidul Islam, as a member of the Assam Legislative Assembly from 83 DHING Legislative Constituency Assembly in the general elections held in 1996.
16 in this appeal by special leave, filed an election petition under Section 80, read with Section 80 A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, hereinafter referred to as the Act , calling in question the election of respondent No.
On 30th September, 1997 the appellant filed an application seeking permission for substitution to be able to carry the proceedings in the election petition under Section 100 3 c of the Act.
In this application, reference is made to the withdrawal numberice published in the Assam Tribune date 12th September, 1997 as also to the numberice published in the Government Gazette dated 20th September, 1997.
It appears that in the meanwhile All India Congress Tiwari and Indian National Congress I merged and on account of that merger, both the election petitioner and the returned candidate became members of the same political party.
Various allegations were made in the election petition with prayer for a direction for re counting of votes polled in the election and thereafter to declare the election of respondent No.
2000 1 SCR 270 The following Order of the Court was delivered Mohammed Idris Ali, respondent No.
The High Court erroneously calculated the period of limita tion from the publication of the numberice in the English daily Assam Tribune of 12.9.97 rather than from the date of publication in the Official Gazette, Ex.
On 14th July, 1997, numberices of the withdrawal application were issued and published in the Official Gazette as well as in local English newspapers.
1 as void under Section 100 l d and iv and to declare the election petitioner to have been duly elected from the said Assembly Constituency.
The returned candidate resisted the substitu tion application.
The period of 14 days ought to have been calculated from the date of publication of the withdrawal numberice in the Official Gazette i.e. 20th September, 1997 and so calculated we find that the application which was filed by the appellant misc.
At this stage, the election petitioner filed an application under Section 109 of the Act seeking to withdraw the election petition.
In this application reference is made to the withdrawal numberice published in the Assam Tribune in its issue dated 12th September, 1997.
On 2.9.97, the withdrawal application was allowed and as mandated by Section 110 of the Act, a numberification about the same was published.
The election petition was resisted by the returned candidate.
The election petitioner had companytested the election as a candidate numberinated by All India Congress Tiwari , while the returned candidate respondent No.
The election petition came to be registered as Election Petition No.
Some of the other candidates, who had filed their numberination papers and companytested the elections, however, remained ex parte in the High Court.
7 of 1996 in the Gauhati High Court.
This application was filed on 29th April, 1997.
1 companytested the elections sponsored by Indian National Congress I .
The numberification came to be published in the newspaper Assam Tribune, Ex.
It transpires that on 3rd October, 1997 the appellant also filed another application for the same relief registered as Misc.
It was also published in the Government Gazette, Ex.
P 4, on 20th September, 1997.
on 12th September, 1997.
Case No, 125 of 97 .
case number 125/97 as also the earlier application misc.
case number nil/97 filed by him were both within the statutory period of 14 days calculated from the date of publication of the numberice in the Official Gazette.
