1 2025:CGHC:854 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR WPC No. 29 of 2025 1. Manoj Gupta S/o Late Badri Prasad Gupta Aged About 55 Years R/o House No.325, Ward No.12, Kumhari, Aroyga Nagar, Post Kumhari, P.S. Marwahi, District Gaurella-Pendra-Marwahi, C.G. ... Petitioner Versus 1. State Election Commission - State Of Chhattisgarh Through - Its Secretary, Sector- 19, North Block, New Raipur, Atal Nagar, Raipur, District- Raipur, C.G. 2. Collector/Additional Collector District- Gaurella-Pendra-Marwahi, C.G. 3. Registration Officer Cum Sub-Divisional Officer (R) Nirvachan Nagar Panchayat- Marwahi, District- Gaurella-Pendra-Marwahi, C.G. 4. Election Commission Of India Through - Its Secretory, Nirvachan Sadan, Ashoka Road, New Delhi, Pin- 110001 5. Kishan Singh Thakur S/o Late Durgesh Singh Thakur R/o Nagar- Panchayat, Marwahi, District- Gaurella-Pendra-Marwahi, C.G. (Complainant / Objector) ... Respondents For Petitioner : Shri Hemant Gupta, Adv. For Respondent No.1 : Shri Venketesh Pandey, Adv. appears on behalf of Shri R.S. Marhas, Adv. For Respondent/State : Shri Praveen Das, Dy. Adv. General For Respondent No.4 : Shri Rakesh Kumar Jha, Advocate Order on Board By Bibhu Datta Guru, J. 2 7/1/2025 1. By the present petition, the petitioner is seeking quashment of the order dated 9-12-2024 passed by the respondent No.2 in appeal No.1/2024 and order dated 30-11-2024 passed by the respondent No.3. 2. (i) The facts of the case, as projected in the writ petition, are that the petitioner is a resident of village Siwni, Block Marwahi, District Gaurella- Pendra-Marwahi. Father of the petitioner owned some property and the family of the petitioner has also some ancestral property and doing business therein. However, since last few years the petitioner is residing at village Kumhari, to earn livelihood, as some of their agricultural lands are situated in the said village. When he started residing at village Kumhari he started construction of house in the said village. Since the petitioner was residing at village Kumhari, Block - Marwahi, for more than 3-4 years on rent, he wish to include his name in the voter list of village Kumhari and earlier his name was in the voter list of village Siwni with "Voter ID no SHP0839720", which comes in Constituency of Marwahi in Assembly Election. The petitioner surrendered his earlier voter ID No. SHP0839720 with the respondent No.4 and the new election voter ID issued by the respondent No.4 in favour of the petitioner. Accordingly, the name of the petitioner was included in the voter list of village Kumhari, Block - Marwahi in polling booth No 51 in the month of August, 2024 on the basis of the documents presented by the petitioner e.g. Aadhar card, Land records, rent agreement, etc. On 10-09-2024 the Respondent No.1 had issued guidelines and directed for preparation of Photo Electoral Roll for Nagar 3 Palika election and by-election for year 2024. It is mentioned in the said order that the list be prepared for voters at the position/situation of 1-1- 2024 and accordingly the primary Electoral Roll be published; thereafter objections be called upon from 16-10-2024 to 23-10-2024; and the same will be decided till 29-10-2024. (ii) Thereafter, vide order dated 17-09-2024 the respondent No.2 had issued the list of Registration Officer cum Sub Registration Officer cum Sub Divisional Officer Nirvachan in column No.3 & 4 to decide the objection and in the said order the appellate authority/officer and their designation is also mentioned in column No.5. Subsequently, by order dated 21-10-2024 the Respondent No.1 had extended the dates for one week to decide the objections from last date 23-10- 2024 till 30-10-2024. The State Government had published corrigendum in Rule 3, 8 & 9 and also the procedure to decide the same and appeal of the order of Registration officer in the official Gazette of the State as notification dated 08-11-2024. Thereafter vide order dated 11-11-2024 the Respondent No.1 issued revised the eligibility/cut off date from 01-01- 2024 to 01-11-2024 for Preparation of Electoral Roll with Photo and had further extended the dates to deal with the objection applications in regard to the Electoral Roll from 30-10-2024 to 30-11-2024. (iii) On 20-11-2024 & 23-11-2024 objections were preferred by Respondent No.5 before the Respondent No.3 regarding inclusion of the name of the petitioner in the Electoral Roll of village Kumhari. The said objection was decided by the respondent No.3 against the petitioner vide order dated 30-11-2024. The petitioner obtained certified copies of the 4 order and documents, which he produced in his defence before the Respondent No.3, and preferred an appeal as per the provisions of Rule 6(5) under format 'D' on 03-12-2024 assailing the order dated 30-11-2024. The said appeal was registered as Appeal No.01/2024, which was dismissed by the Respondent No.2. Thus, this appeal. 3. Learned counsel appearing for the petitioner would submit that the appellate authority rejected the appeal of the petitioner without considering the documents placed by the petitioner as well as the enquiry report (Annexure–P/13) submitted by the Naib Tahsildar, Marwahi to the SDO and the spot inspection made by the Patwari, who have certified that the petitioner is a resident of village Kumhari. He would further submit that the appeal of the petitioner has been rejected by the Additional Collector without considering the fact that the petitioner has submitted documents to prove the fact that he is the resident of village Kumhari and his name is not included in the voter list of any other village. He would also submit that the Election Commission has published an amended order on 27-12-2024 by fixing programme for preparation of voter list and final date fixed for publication of voter list is 15th January, 2025. Thus, the respondent be directed to include the name of the petitioner in the voter list of village Kumhari within the stipulated time. 4. Learned counsel appearing for the respondents, per contra, would submit that the appellate authority has rightly rejected the appeal of the petitioner, as he failed to produce sufficient proof in support of his contention that he is the resident of village Kumhari and contradictory 5 documents placed by the petitioner for which the appellate authority dismissed the appeal of the petitioner. The respondent No.5, who is a complainant, raised an objection before the respondent No.3 regarding inclusion of the name of the petitioner in the voter list of village Kumhari and the said objection was decided by the respondent No.3 against the petitioner vide order dated 30-11-2024. Thus, the petitioner is not entitled for any relief and the writ petition deserves to be dismissed. 5. I have heard learned counsel appearing for the parties and perused the documents. 6. From perusal of the pleadings and documents, it is manifest that earlier voter ID No.SHP0839720 has been surrendered by the petitioner which was related to village Siwni before the Election Commission and a new voter ID No.SHP2352516 issued by including the name of the petitioner in the voter list of village Kumhari. The said inclusion of petitioner’s name in the voter list of village Kumhari was on the basis of land records, rent agreement and Aadhar card and sufficient proof was provided to the respondent No.3 and on the basis of the same name of the petitioner was included in the voter list of Kumhari. 7. Subsequently, when objections were invited, the respondent No.5 raised an objection with regard to inclusion of name of the petitioner, which was decided against the petitioner vide order dated 30-11-2024. Thereagainst, the petitioner preferred an appeal before the Additional Collector as per the required format. The petitioner contended before the appellate authority about the enquiry made by the Naib Tahsildar and 6 report submitted pursuant to the order dated 29-11-2024 and the spot inspection made by the Patwari on 30-11-2024, which are in favour of the petitioner, who have certified that the petitioner is the resident of village Kumhari, but the appeal of the petitioner has been rejected on the ground that contradictory facts brought before the appellate authority and the petitioner failed to prove the fact that he is the resident of village Kumhari and he is entitled to be included in the voter list of said village. 8. 8. From perusal of the order of the Additional Collector, it is quite vivid that the said authority has not adhered to the documents submitted by the petitioner including the enquiry report submitted by the Naib Tahsildar and spot inspection made by the Patwari pursuance to the order of the SDO (R) . The documents which are placed before the authority as well as the spot inspection and enquiry report clearly speak that the petitioner is a resident of village Kumhari and his name has not been included in the voter list of any other village. 9. In view of the discussion made herein above, the impugned order date 30-11-2024 passed by the respondent No.3 and the impugned order dated 9-12-2024 passed by the respondent No.2 are quashed. The respondent No.3 is directed to include the name of the petitioner in the voter list of village Kumhari within the stipulated period as given by the Chhattisgarh State Election Commission in its order dated 27-12-2024. 10. As an upshot, the writ petition is allowed. Sd/- (Bibhu Datta Guru) Judge Gowri K GOWRI SANKARA RAO Digitally signed by K GOWRI SANKARA RAO Date: 2025.01.08 17:59:43 +0530