The Hindu : Karnataka News : Election plea against Puttanna dismissed

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, May 25, 2005

Karnataka

Karnataka

Election plea against Puttanna dismissed

Staff Reporter

BANGALORE: The High Court of Karnataka on Monday dismissed an election petition by A. Deve Gowda for setting aside the election in 2002 of Puttanna from the Bangalore Teachers Constituency to the Karnataka Legislative Council.

In his petition, Mr. Deve Gowda said Mr. Puttanna had indulged in corrupt practices and that he had gifted "hot cases" and ballpoint pens to 1,000 voters in Bangalore.

According to the petitioner, there were 11 candidates, including himself, in the fray. Elections to the Legislative Council were held on June 23, 2002. The petitioner alleged that Mr. Puttanna himself had gone to the residences and schools of voters and distributed the gifts to them.

Dismissing the petition, Justice D.V. Shylendra Kumar observed that the petitioner had not been able to indicate to which voter and precisely at which place and what time, which gift was given.

He said the petitioner had complained to the Election Commission that "hot cases" and ballpoint pens were being distributed. The court observed, "It is no doubt true that if not hot cases, at least, ballpoint pens were found freely flying around during the election period.

"Added to this, it carried the inscription - with compliments from Puttanna - and some of them have already come before the court."

It said even if any one of the ballpoint pen can stick to Mr. Puttanna in the sense that he had given it to the voters to induce them to vote for him, it would amount to acts of bribery and corrupt practices.

The court regretted that indulgences in acts of corrupt practices were rampant by the candidates in elections and no election was fought on the principles of adhering to the requirements of law. It said the stage had not been reached where courts could take judicial notice of such indulgence for the purpose of deciding an election petition. It said the petitioner has "not been successful in ensuring that at least one ballpoint pen was able to stick to Mr. Puttanna to affect his success in the election. The petition should contain proper pleas to make good an election petition.

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