Karnataka High Court
Eramma vs Bevin Manjunath And Ors on 13 December, 2023
Author: R.Devdas
Bench: R.Devdas
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WA No. 200145 of 2023
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA,
KALABURAGI BENCH
DATED THIS THE 13TH DAY OF DECEMBER, 2023
PRESENT
THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE R.DEVDAS
AND
THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE C M JOSHI
WRIT APPEAL NO. 200145 OF 2023 (LB-ELE)
BETWEEN:
ERAMMA W/O NARASAPPA
AGE: 33 YEARS,
OCC: MEMBER GRAM PANCHAYAT
KALMALA, TQ: DIST :RAICHUR.
...APPELLANT
(BY SRI. JAYANANDAYYA AND
SMT. SANGEETA S.J., ADVOCATES)
AND:
Digitally signed by
VARSHA N 1. SRI. BEVIN MANJUNATH
RASALKAR
Location: HIGH S/O DODDA HANUMANTH
COURT OF
KARNATAKA AGE: 42 YEARS,
OCC: GRAM PANCHAYAT MEMBER
AND AGRICULTURE
R/O. KALMALA VILLAGE
TQ: DIST : RAICHUR - 584 136.
2. ESHAPPA OMKARI
S/O MALLESHAPPA OMKARI
AGE: 33 YEARS, OCC: GRAM PANCHAYAT
MEMBER AND AGRICULTURE
R/O. KALMALA VILLAGE
TQ: DIST : RAICHUR - 584 136.
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WA No. 200145 of 2023
3. THE STATE OF KARNATAKA
REPRESENTED BY ITS
PRINCIPAL SECRETARY
DEPARTMENT OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT AND
PANCHAYAT RAJ
M.S. BUILDING, BENGALURU - 560 001.
4. THE DEPUTY COMMISSIONER
AND DISTRICT ELECTION OFFICER
RAICHUR - 584 101.
5. THE ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER
RAICHUR - 584 101.
6. TAYAPPA S/O RAMAPPA KALAMALA
AGE: 42 YEARS,
OCC: MEMBER GRAM PANCHAYAT
KALMALA, R/O. KALMALA
TQ: DIST : RAICHUR - 584 136.
7. SRIDHAR S/O MALLAPPA METRI
AGE: 23 YEARS,
OCC: MEMBER GRAM PANCHAYAT
KALMALA, R/O. KALMALA
TQ: DIST : RAICHUR - 584 136.
8. SMT. DURGAMMA W/O SHNKARNARAYANA
AGE: 45 YEARS,
OCC: MEMBER GRAM PANCHAYAT
KALMALA, R/O. KALMALA
TQ: DIST : RAICHUR - 584 136.
9. SMT. SUGAMMA
W/O MALLIKARJUN SWAMY
AGE: 72 YEARS,
OCC: MEMBER GRAM PANCHAYAT
KALMALA, R/O. KALMALA
TQ: DIST : RAICHUR - 584 136.
10. BASAPPA
S/O LAXMAN KALMALA
AGE: 58 YEARS,
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WA No. 200145 of 2023
OCC: MEMBER GRAM PANCHAYAT
KALMALA, R/O. KALMALA
TQ: DIST : RAICHUR - 584 136.
11. RUBIYA BEGUM
W/O KHAJAHUSSAIN
AGE: 40 YEARS,
OCC: MEMBER GRAM PANCHAYAT
KALMALA, R/O. KALMALA
TQ: DIST : RAICHUR - 584 136.
12. SRIDEVI
W/O ARJUN KALMALA
AGE: 22 YEARS,
OCC: MEMBER GRAM PANCHAYAT
KALMALA, R/O. KALMALA
TQ: DIST : RAICHUR - 584 136.
13. BASAMMA W/O BUDEPPA CHALAVADI
AGE: 34 YEARS,
OCC: MEMBER GRAM PANCHAYAT
KALMALA, R/O. KALMALA
TQ: DIST : RAICHUR - 584 136.
14. SHANTAMMA W/O YALLAPPA KALMALA
AGE: 70 YEARS,
OCC: MEMBER GRAM PANCHAYAT
KALMALA, R/O. KALMALA
TQ: DIST : RAICHUR - 584 136.
15. K. JABHANNA S/O BASAVARAJ
AGE: 25 YEARS,
OCC: MEMBER GRAM PANCHAYAT
KALMALA, R/O. KALMALA
TQ: DIST : RAICHUR - 584 136.
...RESPONDENTS
(BY SRI BASAVARAJ R. MATH, ADVOCATE FOR C/R-1;
SMT PRATHIMA HONNAPUR, AAG AND
SRI MALLIKARJUN C. BASAREDDY, GA FOR R3 TO R5)
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WA No. 200145 of 2023
THIS WRIT APPEAL IS FILED UNDER SECTION 4 OF
KARNATAKA HIGH COURT ACT, 1961, PRAYING TO ALLOW THE
ABOVE WRIT APPEAL AND SET ASIDE THE IMPUGNED ORDER
DATED 03.10.2023 PASSED BY LEARNED SINGLE JUDGE IN
W.P.NO.201731/2023 AND DISMISS THE SAID WRIT PETITION
FILED BY PETITIONERS/ RESPONDENTS NO.1 AND 2, IN THE
ENDS OF JUSTICE AND EQUITY.
THIS APPEAL COMING ON FOR ORDERS THIS DAY,
R.DEVDAS J., DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:
JUDGMENT
R. DEVDAS J., (ORAL):
The appellant is a member of Kalmala Grama
Panchayat of Raicur Taluk and District. When the 1st and
2nd respondents filed a writ petition before the learned
Single Judge in W.P.No.201731/2023, seeking certain
directions in the matter of allocation of reservation to the
post of Adhyaksha and Upadhyaksha of the Grama
Panchayat, the appellant herein filed an impleading
application and impleaded herself in the writ petition.
Learned Single Judge had passed an interim order putting
on notice the respondents that the further process of
election shall be subject to the final outcome of the writ
petition. Thereafter, by an another interim order dated
01.08.2023, learned Single Judge held that he was prima-
facie satisfied that the reservation of the post of
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Adhyaksha of Kalmala Grama Panchayat for Scheduled
Tribe is contrary to law and rule of rotation of reservation
and therefore stayed the notification of reservation issued
by the Deputy Commissioner, insofar as Kalmala Grama
Panchayat is concerned, till the next date of hearing.
Thereafter, the matter was heard and the learned Single
Judge allowed the writ petition while quashing the
notification of the reservation for the post of Adhyaksha of
Kalmala Grama Panchayat for Scheduled Tribe category
and directed the respondent-authorities to redo the
process of assigning the reservation to the post of
Adhyaksha while considering the representation dated
23.06.2023 given by the petitioners. It was also directed
that the Election Officer was permitted to issue fresh
calendar of events insofar as Kalmala Grama Panchayat, is
concerned.
2. Learned Additional Advocate General (AAG)
appearing on behalf of the respondent-authorities has
taken this Court through the relevant information that
would be germane for consideration of this appeal.
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Learned AAG would submit that the provisions contained
in the statute in the matter of providing reservation to the
posts of the Adhyaksha and Upadhyaksha of the Grama
Panchayats in the State and the requirement of following
the rule of rotation is found in the nature of guidelines
issued by the State Election Commission. Attention of this
Court is drawn to order dated 25.05.2023 issued by the
State Election Commission which prescribes the guidelines
to be followed by the Deputy Commissioners while
allocating reservation to the posts of Adhyaksha and
Upadhyaksha of the Grama Panchayats in every Taluk.
3. Learned AAG submits that in terms of the
guidelines, the Election Officer is required to commence
the rotation from the category of Scheduled Castes. The
Election Officer is required to identify the Grama
Panchayats which had the reservation of the Scheduled
Castes in the previous term. After identifying such Grama
Panchayats, the Election Officer is thereafter required to
identify the next set of Grama Panchayats which would be
eligible for reservation for Scheduled Castes, in terms of a
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list of descending order of Scheduled Castes Grama
Panchayats based on the population of Scheduled Castes.
From amongst, those Grama Panchayats eligible for
reservation of Scheduled Castes, preference will also be
given to the Female category in terms of the constitutional
mandates. After assigning the Grama Panchayats of the
Scheduled Caste reservation, the Election Officer is
required to proceed to take up the Scheduled Tribes
category. After completion of the allocation of the
Scheduled Tribes category, similar exercise is required to
be undertaken in respect of the Backward Classes 'A' and
Backward Classes 'B' categories. The remaining Grama
Panchayats will be allocated the General Merit category
with the Female category in priority and as a general
guidelines, it is stated that allocation of Female category
should be avoided if in the immediate past the reservation
was given to Female category. Nevertheless, while
foreseeing certain difficulties, it is provided in the
guidelines that "as far as possible" the reservations shall
not be repeated in respect of the Female category. This,
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according to the learned AAG is put in place to provide a
play in the joints.
4. The learned AAG would thereafter take this Court
through the relevant information i.e., Raichur Taluk has
got 34 Grama Panchayats, out of which 17 is required to
be reserved for Female category; 9 seats are reserved for
Scheduled Castes, out of which 5 are reserved for Female
category; 9 seats are reserved for Scheduled Tribes, out of
which 5 are reserved for Female category; however, in
Raichur Taluk there is no reservation either for Backward
Classes 'A' or Backward Classes 'B' categories. The
remaining 16 seats are allocated to General Merit, out of
which 7 are reserved for Female category. With this in the
background, the learned AAG would submit that there is
no question of allocating Backward Classes 'A' or Backward
Classes 'B' category reservation to the Grama Panchayats
in Raichur Taluk. The reservation is required to be rotated
only amongst the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and
General Merit categories.
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5. Moreover, it is submitted that from the year
2020, the State Election Commission has put in place a
computerized system which is known as GPPVP
application, which would minimize human intervention and
rule out errors to the maximum extent. However,
information as stated above would be fed into computer
application and thereafter the results will be thrown out by
the computer itself. It is further submitted that the entire
process is now video recorded and it is available for
scrutiny. There are other guidelines which would become
operational in certain circumstances where there are more
than one Grama Panchayats standing on the same footing
and under those circumstances provision is made for
allocation of the reservation by picking up a lottery.
Learned AAG would submit that with this in the
background when we analyze the check-list prepared by
the Election Officer, we can see that in the immediate
previous past i.e., in 2020 first term elections, Kalmala
had reservation of General (Female) for the post of
Adhyaksha of Grama Panchayat. Since, reservation is to
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be rotated only amongst the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled
Tribes and General (Miscellaneous) categories, it would be
impermissible even as per the guidelines to allocate
General category reservation to Kalmala Grama
Panchayat. In that view of the matter, it is submitted
while pointing out to the check-list that since reservation
is rotated only amongst Scheduled Cates, Scheduled
Tribes and General (Miscellaneous) categories, there will
be repetition of Scheduled Castes after reservation is
provided for Scheduled Tribes and General
(Miscellaneous).
6. In other words, it is submitted that after every
two terms there will be a repetition of Scheduled Castes
category similarly in respect of Scheduled Tribes. This will
be alternated by having General (Miscellaneous)
reservation as could be seen from the check-list. The
learned AAG would therefore submit that no fault can be
found in the reservation provided by the authorities since
in the immediate previous past i.e., 2020 first term
election the post of Adhyaksha of Kalmala Grama
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Panchayat was reserved for General (Female) category.
In that view of the matter, it is submitted that the Election
Officer has followed the rules which are in the form of
guidelines issued by the State Election Commission.
7. Having regard to the submissions made by the
learned AAG and on perusing the appeal papers, this Court
is prima-facie satisfied that the allocation of reservation
made by the competent authority is in terms of the
guidelines issued by the State Election Commission. It is
unfortunate that relevant information was not placed
before the learned Single Judge either by the State
Government and or by other respondents. It does not
mean that the writ petitioners have no duty to place the
relevant material before the Court. As a prudent
petitioner, even the writ petitioners were required to
collect all the required information and place it before the
learned Single Judge. The learned Single Judge, who did
not have the benefit of going through the relevant
information has passed the impugned order.
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8. In that view of the matter, since we have found
that the allocation of the reservation of Scheduled Tribes
category to the post of Adhyaksha of the Grama Panchayat
is in accordance with law and the rules/guidelines
formulated by the State Election Commission, we have to
hold that the orders passed by the learned Single Judge
setting aside the allocation of reservation, cannot be
sustained.
9. Accordingly, while allowing the writ appeal, we set
aside the impugned order dated 03.10.2023 passed by the
learned Single Judge in W.P.No.201731/2023. The
respondent-authorities may proceed to conduct the
elections to the post of Adhyaksha of Kalmala Grama
Panchayat, forthwith, in accordance with law.
10. Pending Interlocutory Applications, if any, stand
disposed of.
Sd/-
JUDGE
Sd/-
JUDGE
DL
