The Jammu and Kashmir Representation of the People (Amendment) Act, 1995

Short title and commencement.--(1) This Act may be called the Jammu and Kashmir Representation of the People (Amendment) Act, 1995.

1. (2) It shall come into force at once.

Substitution of new section for section 61 of Jammu and Kashmir Act IV of 1957.--In the Jammu and Kashmir Representation of the People Act, 1957, for section 61, the following section shall be substituted, namely :-- "61. Death of a candidate before the poll.--(1) If a candidate set up by a recognised political party.--

1. (a) dies at any time after 11.00 A.M. on the last date for making nominations and his nomination is found valid on scrutiny under section 47 ; or
2. (b) whose nomination has been found valid on scrutiny under section 47 and who has not withdrawn his candidature under section 48, dies, and in either case, a report of his death is received at any time before the publication of the list of contesting candidates under section 49 ; or
3. (c) dies as a contesting candidate and a report of his death is received before the commencement of the poll, the returning officer, shall upon being satisfied about the fact of the death of the candidate, by order announce an adjournment of the poll to a date to be notified later and report the fact to the Election Commission and also to the Government : Provided that no order for adjourning a poll should be made in a case referred to in clause
4. (a) except after the scrutiny of all the nominations including the nomination of the deceased candidate.

1. (2) The Election Commission shall, on the receipt of a report from the returning officer under sub-section (1), call upon the recognised political party, whose candidate had died, to nominate another candidate for the said poll within seven days of Issue of such notice to such recognised political party and the provisions of sections 41 to 48 shall, so far as may be, apply in relation to such nomination as they would apply to other nominations : Provided that no person who has given a notice of withdrawal of his candidature under sub-section
2. (1) of section 48 before the adjournment of the poll shall be ineligible for being nominated as a candidate for the election after such adjournment.
3. (3) Where a list of contesting candidates had been published under section 49 before the adjournment of the poll under sub-section (1), the returning officer shall again prepare and publish a fresh list of contesting candidates under that section so as to include the name of the candidate who has been validly nominated under sub-section (2). Explanation.--For the purposes of this section "recognised political party" means a political party for which a symbol is reserved by the Election Commission".

Insertion of new section 44B in Act IV of 1957.--After section 44A of the principal Act as so inserted, the following section shall be inserted, namely :-- "44-B. Right to information.--(1) A candidate shall, apart from any information which he is required to furnish, under this Act or the rules made thereunder, in his nomination paper delivered under sub-section

1. (1) of section 44, also furnish the information as to whether--
   • (i) he is accused of any offence punishable with imprisonment for two years or more in a pending case in which a charge has been framed by the court of competent jurisdiction ;
   • (ii) he has been convicted of an offence (other than any offence referred to in sub-section
2. (1) or sub-section (2), or covered in sub-section (3), of section 24) and sentenced to imprisonment for one year or more.
3. (2) The candidate or his proposer, as the case may be, shall, at the time of delivering to the returning officer nomination paper under sub-section
4. (1) of section 44 also deliver to him an affidavit sworn by the candidate in the prescribed form for verifying the information specified in sub-section (1).
5. (3) The returning officer shall, as soon as may be, after the furnishing of information to him under sub-section (1), display the aforesaid information by affixing a copy of the affidavit, delivered under sub-section (2), at a conspicuous place at his office for the information of the electors relating to a constituency for which the nomination paper is delivered."

Insertion of new section 83A in Act IV of 1957.--After section 83 of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted, namely :-- "83-A. Declaration of assets and liabilities.--(1) Every member of the Legislature of the state, whether elected or nominated, shall, within ninety days from the date on which he makes and subscribes an oath or affirmation, according to the form set out for the purposes in the Fifth Schedule to the Constitution, for taking his seat in the Legislative Assembly of the State, or the Legislative Council of the State, as the case may be, furnish the information, relating to--

1. (i) the movable and immovable property of which he is the owner or a beneficiary ;
2. (ii) his liabilities to the Central Government or the State Government ;
3. (iii) the dues to any public financial institution ; and
4. (iv) his liabilities to any public financial institution : Provided that the member specified in sub-section

1. (1) shall furnish the information to the Chairman of the Legislative Council of the State or the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the State, as the case may be.
2. (2) The information under sub-section
3. (1) shall be furnished in such form and in such manner as may be prescribed in the rules made under sub-section (3).
4. (3) The Chairman of the Legislative Council of the State or the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the State, as the case may be, may make rules for the purposes of sub-section (2).
5. (4) The rules made by the Chairman of the Legislative Council of the State or the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the State under sub-section
6. (3) shall be laid, as soon as may be after they are made, before the Council or the Legislative Assembly, as the case may be, for a total period of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions and shall take effect upon the expiry of the said period of thirty days unless they are sooner approved with or without modifications or disapproved by the Legislative Council or the Legislative Assembly and where they are so approved, they shall take effect on such approval in the form in which they were laid or in such modified form as the case may be, and where they are so disapproved, they shall be of no effect.
7. (5) The Chairman of the Legislative Council of the State or the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the State may direct that any wilful contravention of the rules made under sub-section
8. (3) by an elected candidate referred to in sub-section
9. (1) may be dealt with in the same manner as the breach of privilege of the Legislative Council or the Legislative Assembly, as the case may be.
   • (i) "immovable property" means the land and includes any building or other structure attached to the land or permanently attached to anything which is attached to the land ;
   • (ii) "moveable property" means any other property which is not the immovable property and includes corporeal and incorporeal property of any description ;
   • (iii) "public financial institution" means any public financial institution within the meaning of section 4A of the Companies Act, 1956 and includes bank ; and
   • (iv) "bank" referred to in clause
   • (iii) here--
   • (a) "State Bank of India" constituted under section 3 of the State Bank of India Act, 1955 ;
   • (b) "Subsidiary Bank" having the meaning assigned to it in clause
   • (k) of section 2 of the State Bank of India (Subsidiary Banks) Act, 1959 ;
   • (c) "Regional Rural Bank" established under section 3 of the Regional Rural Banks Act, 1976 ;
   • (d) "Corresponding new Bank" having the meaning assigned to it in clause
   • (da) of section 5 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 ; and
   • (e) "co-operative bank" having the meaning assigned to it in clause
   • (cci) of section 5 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 as modified by sub-clause
     • (i) of clause
   • (c) of section 56 of that Act."

Insertion of new section 132AA in Act IV of 1957.-After section 132A of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted, namely :- "132AA. Penalty for filing false affidavit, etc -A candidate who himself or through his proposer, with intent to be elected in an election-

1. (i) fails to give information relating to sub-section

1. (1) of section 44B ; or
   • (ii) gives false information which he knows or has reason to believe to be false ; or
   • (iii) conceals any information, in his information paper delivered under sub-section
2. (1) of section 44 or in his affidavit which is required to be furnished therein under sub section
3. (2) of section 44B as the case may be, shall, notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force, be punishable, with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine, or with both."

Insertion of new section 68A.--After section 68 of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted, namely :-- "68A. Adjournment of poll or countermanding of election on grounds of booth capturing.--(1) If at any election.--

1. (a) booth capturing has taken place at a polling station or at a place fixed for the poll (hereafter in this section referred to as a place) in such a manner that the result of the poll at that polling station or place cannot be ascertained ; or
2. (b) booth capturing takes place in any place for counting of votes in such a manner that the result of the counting at that place cannot be ascertained. the returning officer shall forthwith report the matter to the Election Commission.

1. (2) In every case referred to in clause
   • (a) or clause
   • (b) of sub-section (1), the Election Commission shall, on the receipt of a report from the returning officer under sub-section
2. (1) or otherwise, after taking all material circumstances into account, either--
   • (a) declare that the poll at that polling station be void, appoint a day and fix the hours, for taking fresh poll at that polling station or place and notify the date so appointed and hours so fixed in such manner as it may deem fit : or
   • (b) if satisfied that in of the large number of polling stations or places involved in booth capturing the result of the election is likely to be affected, or that booth capturing had affected counting of votes in such a manner as to affect the result of the election, declare that the poll in that constituency be void, appoint a day and fix the hours for taking fresh poll in that constituency and notify the date so appointed and the hours so fixed in such manner as it may deem fit or countermand the election in that constituency. Explanation.--In this section, booth capturing shall have the same meaning as in section 142-A".

Amendment of section 70.--In section 70 of the principal Act after clause (b), the following clause shall be inserted, namely :-- "(c) any class of persons notified by the Election Commission in consultation with the Government to give their votes by postal ballot and not in any other manner at an election in a constituency where a poll is taken subject to the fulfilment of such requirements as may be specified in those rules."

Amendment of section 85.--In section 484 of the principal Act in sub-section (1), the following Explanations shall be inserted, namely :-- Explanation I.--Any expenditure incurred or authorised in connection with the election of a candidate by a political party or by any other association or body of persons or by any individual (other than the candidate or his election agent) shall not be deemed to be expenditure in connection with the election incurred or authorised by the candidate or by his election agent for the purposes of this sub-section. Explanation II.--For the removal of doubt, it is hereby declared that any expenditure incurred in respect of any arrangements made, facilities provided or any other act, or thing done by any person in the service of the Government and belonging to any of the classes mentioned in clause

1. (7) of section 132 in the discharge or purported to discharge of his official duty as mentioned in the proviso to that clause shall not be deemed to be expenditure in connection with the election incurred or authorised by the candidate or by his election agent for the purposes of this sub-section.

Amendment of section 132.--In section 132 of the principal Act,--

1. (a) in clause (7), the following proviso shall be inserted, namely :-- " Provided that where any person in the service of the Government and belonging to any of the classes aforesaid, in the discharge or purported to discharge of his official duty, makes any arrangements or provides any facilities or does any other act or thing, for, to or in relation to any candidate or his election agent or any other person acting with the consent of the candidate or his election agent (whether by reason of the office held by the candidate or for any other reason), such arrangements, facilities or act or thing shall not be deemed to be assistance for the furtherance of the prospects of that candidate's election"
2. (b) after clause

1. (7) the following clause shall be inserted, namely :-- "(8) Booth capturing by a candidate or his agent or other person."

Insertion of new section 142-A.--After section 142 of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted, namely :-- "142-A. Offence of booth capturing.--(1) Whoever commits an offence of booth capturing shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than six months but which may extend to two years and with fine, and where such offence is committed by a person in the service of the Government, he shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than three years but which may extend to five years and with fine. Explanation.--For the purpose of this section, booth capturing includes, among other things, all or any of the activities, namely :--

1. (a) seizure of a polling station or a place fixed for the poll by any person or persons making polling authorities surrender the ballot papers or voting machines and doing of any other act which affects the orderly conduct of elections :
2. (b) taking possession of a polling station or a place fixed for the poll by any person or persons and allowing only his or their own supporters to exercise their right to vote and preventing others from free exercise of their right to vote :
3. (c) coercing or intimidating or threatening, directly or indirectly any elector and preventing him from going to the polling station or a place fixed for the poll to cast his vote :
4. (d) seizure of a place for counting of votes by any person or persons, making the counting authorities surrender the ballot papers or voting machines and the doing of anything which effects the orderly counting of votes :
5. (e) doing by any person in the service of the Government of all or any of the aforesaid activities or aiding or conniving at, any such activity in the furtherance of the prospects of the election of a candidate.

1. (2) an offence punishable under sub-section
2. (1) shall be cognizable".