While dealing with the applicability of the "One Bar One Vote" principle, the Delhi High Court has clarified that the principle becomes an embargo only when a member has exercised his right to vote by casting a vote in the election of some other bar association.
As laid down by the High Court in P.K. Dash, Advocate & Ors. Vs. Bar Council of Delhi & Ors., the Court has stated that merely because the name figures in the voter list of another bar association would not constitute a disqualification in terms of the principle of ‘one bar one vote’.
The Judgement was passed by a Single Judge Bench of Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva in a petition by an advocate, Vandana Sharma (petitioner) seeking to include her name in the final voters list of the Dwarka Court Bar Association Election 2019-20 which were scheduled to be held on September 21.
The petitioner enrolled as an Advocate with the Delhi Bar Association and became a member of Dwarka Court Bar Association in the year 2010. The petitioner was also a member of Shahdara Bar Association and her name figured in the voter list for the election of the Shahdara Bar Association in the year 2017. She, however, claimed that she did not cast her vote in the election and also submitted a declaration to that effect.
However, for the election of the Dwarka Court Bar Association, the name of the petitioner figured in the tentative voters list but did not figure in the final voter list of the voters for the Dwarka Court Bar Association.
The petitioner, thus, filed an objection with the Election Committee and also submitted a certificate issued from the Shahdara Bar Association to the effect that though her name figured in the voter list, she did not cast her vote in the said election.
The Election Committee, however, refused to include her name in the final voter list and therefore, also rejected her nomination for the post of Lady Member Executive. Aggrieved by the rejection, the petitioner moved the High Court.
Before the High Court, the Dwarka Bar Association as well as the Nodal Officer/Administrative Officer submitted that name of the petitioner was deleted from the final list of voters as her name figured in the Shahdara Bar Association voters list for the 2017. Since no further election was held after 2017, the petitioner was disqualified in terms of the judgment of P.K. Dash & Ors.
The Court noted that the above-mentioned case provided that to be eligible to vote, such member, prior to casting his vote, could furnish a "Declaration" that she/he has not voted in the immediately preceding election to any other Bar Association and was not voting in any election of the Supreme Court Bar Association or any other Bar Association.
The Court further recorded that it was on the basis of such “Declaration” that a final voters list is to be prepared by the Bar Association by excluding those who had voted in elections of any other Bar Association in that year or the previous year. If such a declaration is found to be false, it shall entail automatic suspension of the member giving such false declaration from membership of the Association for a period of three years, it added.
In view of the above, the Court opined that the Election Committee had misconstrued the “one bar one vote” principle by deleting the petitioner’s name from the voter list merely because her name figured in the voter list of Shahdara Bar Association.
Hence, the Court stated:-
“The rule as laid-down by the Division Bench becomes an embargo only when a member has exercised his/her right to vote and casted a vote in the election of some other bar association. Merely because the name figures in the voter list would not constitute a disqualification in terms of the principle of ‘one bar one vote’ as laid-down by the Division Bench.”
The Court held that she did not suffer the disqualification on the principle of “one bar one vote” and thus ordered,
“Accordingly, the decision of the election committee to delete her name from the final list is incorrect and the consequential rejection of her nomination is also erroneous.. a writ of mandamus is issued directing the respondents to include the name of the petitioner in the final voter list and to include the name of the petitioner as a candidate for the post of Lady Member Executive in the ensuing election of the Dwarka Bar Association.”
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