TMI Blog1996 (3) TMI 565X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ade on January 31, 1994 in Election Petition No. 1 of 1991. At an election to the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly held on June 15, 1991 from Assembly Constituency No. 220 Cheranmahadevi Constituency, the appellant was declared to have been elected. His election was challenged by the first respondent-unsuccessful candidate. Several averments were made under Section 123 of the Representation of People Act, 1951 (for short, the 'Act') imputing corrupt practices committed by the respondent in the said election. The High Court found that the appellant had declared in his return, the election expenditure as ₹ 36, 350 wherein he had admitted that he had used the vehicle bearing registration No. TN-72 1909 and had incurred an expendit ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... t he had committed corrupt practice, has not been proved beyond reasonable doubt. The doctrine of preponderance of probabilities does not apply to prove corrupt practice. The burden like a trial of the criminal case rests always on the election petitioner to prove the case beyond reasonable doubt, that all the circumstances conclusively establish that the appellant had committed corrupt practice. In this case, such a proof has not been offered by the respondent. The benefit of doubt should, therefore, be given to the appellant. 3. Shri S. Sivasubramaniam, learned senior counsel for the respondent, contended that after the written statement filed by the appellant, a rejoinder had been filed by the respondent in which it was specifically s ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nferred that the appellant has incurred expenditure in excess of the limit prescribed under Section 77 of the Act. In view of the respective contentions, the question that arises for consideration is : whether the finding of the High Court that the appellant had committed corrupt practice under Section 123(6) of the Act is sustainable in law? Section 77 of the Act envisages that: Every candidate at an en election shall, either by himself or by his election agent, keep a separate and correct account of all expenditure in him or by his election agent between the date on which he has been nominated and the date of declaration of the result thereof, both dates inclusive. 4. Under Sub-section (2) the account shall contain such particula ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ly to the nature of the vehicle, namely, whether it is a tax or tourist vehicle. The user thereof was not questioned. Under those circumstances, it stands established that the appellant had used two vehicles. From this, the necessary conclusion is that he did not specify in his expenditure return that he used the said vehicle and the expenditure incurred towards that vehicle. Thus he deliberately suppressed the material fact of the user of the vehicle and the expenditure incurred for its use. What expenditure he had incurred for the use of the vehicle can be inferred from proved facts. Had the appellant gone into the box and examined himself as a witness, he would have been subjected to cross-examination of his actual total expenditure. Mor ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e Court, after considering the evidence before it, either believes the fact to exist or consider its existence so probable as a prudent man ought, under the circumstances available on the facts in the case on hand, to act upon the supposition that the existence of the fact is so probable that a Court can act upon that evidence. 6. In Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education v. K.S. Gandhi and Ors. [1991]1SCR773 at 748, para 37, this Court had held that inference from the evidence and circumstances must be carefully distinguished from conjectures of speculation. The mind is prone to take pleasure to adapt circumstances to one another and even in straining them a little to force them to form parts of one connect ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s deliberately withheld by him. He suppressed that fact in his expenditure return. From these facts, the High Court has reasonably arrived at the finding that had he produced the account, the expenditure would have been shown to be in excess of the limit prescribed under the Act. An adverse inference was drawn from the omission to produce the account that the appellant had committed corrupt practice under Section 123(6) of the Act. This conclusion, on the basis of the evidence on record, cannot be said to be vitiated by any error of law. It is true that the charge of corrupt practice under Section 123 is treated akin to a charge in a criminal trial. The trial of an election petition is like a trial in the criminal case and the burden to pro ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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