Mehar Singh vs The State of Haryana and others

S.P. Goyal, J.—This petition under Articles 226 of 227 of the Constitution of India is directed against the orders of the Deputy Commissioner, Sonepat, dated December 24, 1975 whereby the petitioner was removed from the office of the Panch in the exercise of the powers u/s 102(2)(a) of the Gram Panchayat Act (hereinafter called the Act) and was further disqualified for four years to contest re-election.

2 The petitioner was elected as a Panch of Gram Panchayat Uld pur Tharn, Tehsil and District Sonepat in the last Gram Panchayat elections held in the State of Haryana. He was charged for an offence u/s 61(1)(a) of the Punjab Excise Act having been found in possession of six gram of Charas and was convicted and sentenced by the learned Magistrate 1st Class, Sonepat to one months'' rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs. 25/- In defiant of payment of fine he was further ordered to undergo rigorous imprisonment for fifteen days. On appeal, however, the learned Additional Sessions Judge Sonepat, vide judgment (Annexure P1) dated January 23, 1975, reduced the sentence to one already undergone and ordered the fine to be refunded, if paid. The matter of his conviction was reported by respondent No. 3 to the Deputy Commissioner Sonepat, respondent No. 3, who issued the notice on its basis u/s 102(2)(a) of the Act to show cause as to why the petitioner may not be removed from the office of the Panch. The petitioner duly submitted his reply to the show cause notice but respondent No. 2 rejected it with the finding that his conviction had shown a defect of character and, therefore, ordered his removal vide Annexure P 2 as noticed above.

The legality of the impugned order has been challenged on ground that the conviction of the petitioner u/s 61(1)(a) for having been found in possession of six grams of charas does not disclose any defect of character nor can it be said that he has been convicted of any offence involving moral turpitude. The matter stands concluded by a judgment of this Court in Malha Ram v. The Deputy Commissioner (Deputy Director of Panchayats) Rohtak 1973 P.L.J. 116, wherein C.G. Suri J. held possession of about a tola of charas for one''s personal use does not necessarily show a depravity of character or moral turpitude and that such conviction would not entail disqualification for a member of Gram Panchayat.

This petition is consequently allowed and the impugned order, Annexure P-2, is hereby quashed. No order as to costs.