Double Voting Vitiates Panchayat Polls: Punjab & Haryana HC Upholds Fresh Election Direction

The integrity of the democratic process at the grassroots level cannot survive the inclusion of void votes, as the High Court has affirmed that even a handful of double-polled votes is sufficient to invalidate an entire election where the victory margin is non-existent. In a significant ruling that reinforces electoral purity, the Bench held that once official records confirm multiple voting by the same individuals, the election must be set aside regardless of whether the specific beneficiary of those votes can be identified.

A division bench comprising Justice Deepak Sibal and Justice Rupinderjit Chahal adjudicated the dispute concerning the Sarpanch election of Gram Panchayat Khalila Majra, Panipat. The bench heard a challenge against concurrent findings of lower courts which had nullified the election of a candidate who was originally declared the winner through a draw of lots following a deadlocked vote count.

Judicial Scrutiny of Official Records

The petitioner contended that the voter list relied upon by the lower courts was a mere photocopy and not proved according to the rules of evidence. However, the Punjab and Haryana High Court noted that the record was summoned directly from the Returning Officer and opened in judicial presence. The Bench stated that "The record reveals that, at the stage of presentation of the election petition itself, the learned trial Court summoned the relevant election record from the Returning Officer... It was a copy prepared from the official election record which had been called for by the Court itself at the inception of the election proceedings and produced by the election authorities in pursuance of the Court’s order."

Addressing the impact of the double voting, the Punjab and Haryana High Court emphasized that the secret ballot system prevents tracking individual votes to specific candidates. The Bench expressed that “The fact that it could not be determined in whose favour the additional votes were cast does not render the double voting immaterial. A person cannot exercise the right to vote more than once in the same election. Once it is established from the official election record that the same vote had been cast twice, the additional vote is void and the integrity of the electoral process stands affected.”

Background

The dispute arose after the Sarpanch election held on November 2, 2022, where both the petitioner and respondent No.1 secured exactly 302 votes. The petitioner was declared the winner via a draw of lots. Respondent No.1 challenged this under Haryana Panchayati Raj Act 1994 of the Haryana Panchayati Raj Act, 1994, alleging corrupt practices and double polling. The trial court found four instances where the same voter ID appeared twice in the register.

While the petitioner argued that there was no proof these four votes went to him, the Punjab and Haryana High Court relied on Gurdev Singh v. Presiding Officer and others to affirm that double voting is a ground for nullification. The High Court found no perversity in the findings of the Additional District Judge or the Additional Civil Judge, Panipat, and dismissed the writ petition filed under Article 226 of the Haryana Panchayati Raj Act 1994.

Case Details:
Case No.: CWP-7443-2024(O&M)
Case Title: AMIT v. RAKAM SINGH AND OTHERS
Appearances:
For the Petitioner(s): Mr. A.D.S. Sukhija, Senior Advocate with Mr. I.K. Chhabra, Advocate
For the Respondent(s): Mr. Vikram Singh, Advocate for respondent No.1; Mr. Saurav Mohunta, DAG Haryana

Source: 2026 CaseBase(PNH) 21577