EXTRACT OF THE KARNATAKA MUNICIPALITIES ACT 1964 RELATING TO ELECTIONS

Section 13. [WARDS] for elections:

(1) For the purposes of election of Councillors to be elected to fill the seats under Clause (a) of Sub-section (1) of Section 11, the Government shall by notification determine.

  1. The number of territorial Wards into which the Municipal area shall be divided;
  2. The extent of each territorial ward;
  3. The number of seats allotted to each territorial Ward which shall be one, and
  4. The number of seats, if any reserved for the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Backward Classes and for Women in each territorial Ward.

Provided that the territorial Wards formed shall comprise, as far as may be, of Contiguous blocks:

(1-A) No notification under Sub-section (1) shall be called in question in any court of law.

Section 14. LIST OF VOTERS:

(1) The list of voters of the Municipal Council shall be prepared subject to the superintendence, direction and control of the State Election Commission.

Provided that the electoral roll of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly for the time being in force for such part of the Municipal area as included in any ward may be adopted for the purpose of preparation of list of voters of the Municipal Council for such ward.

Provided further that the list of voters for such ward of the municipal council shall not include any amendment, transposition, inclusion or deletion of entry made after the last date for making nomination for the election to such ward and before completion of such election.

(2) The officer designated by the State Election Commission in this behalf in respect of a Municipal area shall maintain a list of voters for each ward of such Municipal area.

EXPLANATION :

For the purpose of this section, “electoral roll” shall mean an electoral roll prepared under provisions of the Representation of the Peoples Act, 1950 (Central Act XLIII of 1950) for the time being in force.

(3) Every person whose name is in the list of Voters referred to in Sub-section (1) shall, unless disqualified under any law for the time being in force, be qualified to vote, at the election of a member for the ward to which such list pertains.

(4) In every ward, a voter shall have as many votes, as there are Councillors to be elected, from that ward, but no voter shall at any election give more than one vote to any one candidate.

Section 15. QUALIFICATION OF CANDIDATES:

Refer Information for Candidates

Section 16. GENERAL DISQUALIFICATION FOR BECOMING A COUNCILLOR:

Refer Information for Candidates

Section 21. ELECTION PETITIONS

(1) No election of a councillor shall be called in question except by an election petition presented to the Election Tribunal within fifteen days from the date of the declaration of the result of the election.

(2) An election petition calling in question any such election may be presented on one or more of the grounds specified in Section 23-

(a) by any candidate at such election, or

(b) by any voter of the ward concerned.

(3) A petitioner shall join as respondents to his petition all the candidates at the election.

(4) An election petition -

(a) shall contain a concise statement of the material facts on which the petitioner relies;

(b) shall with sufficient particulars, set forth the ground or grounds on which the election is called in question; and

(c) shall be signed by the petitioner and verified in the manner laid down in the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, for the verification of pleadings.

Section 22. Relief that may be claimed by the petitioner:

(1) A petitioner may claim-

(a) a declaration that the election of all or any of the returned candidates, is void, and
(b) in addition thereto, a further declaration that he himself or any other candidate has been duly elected.

(2) The expression "returned candidate" means a candidate who has been declared as duly elected.

Section 23. Grounds for declaring elections to be void:

(1) Subject to the provisions of sub-section (2), if the Election Tribunal is of opinion-

(a) that on the date of his election a returned candidate was not qualified, or was disqualified, to be chosen as a councillor under this Act, or
(b) that any corrupt practice has been committed by a returned candidate or his agent or by any other person with the consent of a returned candidate or his agent, or
(c) that any nomination paper has been improperly rejected, or
(d) that the result of the election, in so far as it concerns a returned candidate, has been materially affected-

(i) by the improper acceptance of any nomination; or
(ii) by any corrupt practice committed in the interests of the returned candidate by an agent or by any other person acting with the consent of such candidate or agent; or
(iii) by the improper acceptance or refusal of any vote or reception of any vote which is void; or
(iv) by the non-compliance with the provisions of this Act or of any rules or orders made thereunder,

the Election Tribunal shall declare the election of the returned candidate to be void.

(2) If in the opinion of the Election Tribunal, any agent of a returned candidate has been guilty of any corrupt practice, but the Tribunal is satisfied-

(a) that no such corrupt practice was committed at the election by the candidate, and every such corrupt practice was committed contrary to the orders and without the consent of the candidate;
(b) that the candidate took all reasonable means for preventing the commission of corrupt practices at the election; and
(c) that in all other respects the election was free from any corrupt practice on the part of the candidate or any of his agents,

then the Tribunal may decide that the election of the returned candidate is not void.

Section 38. CONTROL OF ELECTION:

(1) The superintendence, direction and control of the preparation of list of voters for, and the conduct of all elections to the Municipal Council shall be vested in the State Election Commission.

(2) [Subject to sub-section (1)], Government may, by notification and after previous publication, make rules to provide for or to regulate all or any of the following matters for the purpose of holding elections of councillors under this Act, namely:-

  1. the manner of the splitting up of electoral rolls for Legislative Assembly constituencies into parts for the purpose of constituting one or more of such parts into the list of voters for a [ward]; and the officer or authority by whom such splitting up is to be carried out;
  2. revision and correction of electoral rolls;
  3. redistribution of territorial [wards];
  4. the appointment of returning officers, assistant returning officers, presiding officers and polling officers for the conduct of elections,
  5. the nomination of candidates, form of nomination papers, objections to nomination and scrutiny of nominations;
  6. the deposits to be made by candidates, time and manner of making such deposits and the circumstances under which such deposits may be refunded to candidates or forfeited to the municipal council;
  7. the withdrawal of candidatures;
  8. the appointment of agents of candidates;
  9. the procedure in contested and uncontested elections and the special procedure at elections in [wards] where any seat is reserved for the [Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Backward Classes and Women];
  10. the date, time and place for poll and other matters relating to the conduct of elections including-
    1. the appointment of polling stations for each [ward];
    2. the hours during which the polling station shall be kept open for the casting of votes;
    3. the printing and issue of ballot papers;
    4. the checking of voters of reference to the electoral roll;
    5. the marking with indelible ink on the left forefinger or any other finger or limb of the voter and prohibition of the delivery of any ballot paper to any person if at the time such person applies for such paper he has already such mark so as to prevent presonation of voters;
    6. the manner in which votes are to be given and in particular in the case of illiterate voters or of voters under physical or other disability;
    7. procedure to be followed in respect of challenged votes and tendered votes;
    8. the scrutiny of votes, counting of votes, the declaration and publication of the results and the procedure in case of equality of votes or in the event of a councillor being elected to represent more than one [ward];
    9. the custody and disposal of papers relating to elections;
    10. the suspension of polls in case of any interruption by riot, violence or any other sufficient cause and the holding of a fresh poll;
    11. the holding of a fresh poll in the case of destruction of or tampering with ballot boxes before the count;
    12. the countermanding of the poll in the case of the death of a candidate before the poll;

     

  11. the fee to be paid on a election petition;
  12. any other matter relating to elections or election disputes in respect of which the Government deems it necessary to make rules under this section or in respect of which this Act makes no provision or makes insufficient provision and provision is in the opinion of the Government necessary.

(3) In making any rule under this section, the Government may provide that any contravention thereof shall be punishable with fine which may extend to one hundred rupees.