Sridhar Chandra Bagari vs The State Of West Bengal & Ors
2023 Latest Caselaw 4045 Cal

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16   03.07.2023                             WPA (P) 319 of 2023
RP   Ct. No. 01
AN
                                       Sridhar Chandra Bagari
                                                  Vs.
                                    The State of West Bengal & ors.


                  Mr. Sridhar Chandra Bagari
                                        ... For the petitioner (in-person)

                  Mr. S. N. Mookherjee, Ld. A.G.
                  Mr. Arka Kr. Nag
                  Mr. S. Bandopadhyay
                                          ... For the State

                  Mr. Billwadal Bhattacharyya
                  Mr. Arijit Majumder
                                          ... For the U.O.I.


                            1.    This writ petition has been filed as a Public

                  Interest Litigation by a person who is stated to have

                  voluntarily retired from the Indian Army.       He was an Ex-

                  Assistant Post-Graduate Teacher in one of the Stated aided

                  Higher Secondary School and he claims himself to be a bio-

                  chemic doctor and practicing through bio-chemic system

                  medicine with allied homoeopathy and a social worker, is an

                  advocate of this Court. The petitioner would also state that

                  he is an unreturned candidate of the Joka Gram Panchayat

                  in the election conducted in 2003, Pathar Pratima in 2016

                  and an unreturned candidate in the Parliamentary Election

                  in South Kolkata in the year 2019.

                            2.   The petitioner has essentially two prayers. The

                  first of which is postponement of the forthcoming Panchayat

                  Election. This prayer cannot be granted for more than one

                  reason.    Firstly, this very issue was brought before this

                  Court in a batch of Public Interest Litigations and by
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judgment dated 13.06.2023 in WPA(P) 250/2023, this Court

had rejected the said prayer after interpreting the provisions

of Section 42, 43 and 46 of the West Bengal Panchayat

Elections Act, 2003 (in short, the Act of 2003).           The said

order passed by this Court was affirmed by the Hon'ble

Supreme Court in a Special Leave Petition on 20.06.2023.

Therefore, as rightly pointed out by the learned Advocate

General, principles of res judicata will also apply to Public

Interest        Litigations.   Therefore,   such   a     prayer   for

postponement of elections would clearly tantamount to

calling election in question and such prayer cannot be

granted and the same is rejected.            In this regard, it is

relevant to point out that in terms of Article 243(o)(b), no

election to any Panchayat shall be called in question except

by way of Election petition presented to such authority and

in such manner as is provided for by or under any law made

by legislature of a State. Further, Section 80 of the West

Bengal Panchayat Elections Act, 2003 states that no

election to Panchayat shall be in question except by an

election    petition,     presented    in   accordance    with    the

provisions of this part.        It is to be noted that the forum

before which the dispute has to be raised with regard to the

validity of an election has been provided for under Section

79(1) of the West Bengal Panchayat Act.            Further, Article

329 also speaks about bar to interference by Court in

electoral matters. Therefore, the prayers sought for by the

petitioner cannot be granted.

           3.      With regard to other prayers as sought for by
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the petitioner for declaring an emergency in the State, such

a prayer is sought for against the 2 nd respondent, viz., the

Union of India, Ministry of Home Affairs, New Delhi. The

language of Article 356(1) is very clear and in terms of the

said constitutional provision, if the President on receipt of a

report from the Governor of a State or otherwise is satisfied

that a situation has arisen in which the government of the

State cannot be carried on in accordance with the

provisions of the Constitution, the President may by

proclamation do any of the matters as enumerated in

Clauses (a) to (c) of Article 356(1) of the Constitution of

India. The petitioner appearing in-person would rely upon

the proviso under Article 356(1) of the Constitution of India.

In our considered view, this proviso will no manner assist

the case of the petitioner as the power of the Court to

interfere in the election matters has been clearly

circumscribed under Article 243(o) of the Constitution of

India read with Section 80 of the Act of 2003. Therefore,

the second prayer sought for by the petitioner cannot be

granted by this Court.

4. For the reasons stated hereinabove, the instant

writ petition stands dismissed.

(T. S. Sivagnanam) Chief Justice

(Hiranmay Bhattacharyya, J.)