7. The following new Part is hereby inserted immediately after section 82N of the principal enactment and shall have effect as Part IV A of that enactment:-
| 82O.
| | (1) The election of a candidate as a by member of local authority is avoided by his conviction for any corrupt or illegal practice. | | |
| | (2) Where the election of a person as a member of a local authority is declared void, he shall be disqualified from sitting or voting in such local authority. | | |
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82P.
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(1) The election in respect of any electoral area shall be declared void on an election petition on the following grounds which may be proved to the satisfaction of the Election Judge, namely -
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(a) that by reason of general bribery, general treating or general intimidation or other misconduct or other circumstances whether similar to those enumerated before or not a section of electors was prevented from voting for the recognized political party or independent group which it preferred and there by materially affected the result of the election ;
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(b) non-compliance with the provisions of this Ordinance relating to elections, if it appears that the election was not conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in such provisions and that such non-compliance materially affected the result of the election.
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(2) The election of a candidate as a member of any local authority shall be declared void on an election petition on any of the following grounds which may be proved to the satisfaction of the Election Judge, namely -
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(a) that a corrupt or illegal practice was commuted in connection with the election by the candidate or with his knowledge or consent or by any agent of the candidate,
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(b) that the candidate personally engaged a person as canvasser or agent or to speak on his behalf knowing that such person had within seven years previous to such engagement been found guilty of a corrupt practice under the law relating to the election of the President or the law relating to Referenda or under the Ceylon (Parliament Elections) Order in Council. 1946, or under this Ordinance by a court of competent jurisdiction or by the report of an Election Judge;
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(c) that the candidate personally engaged person as a canvasser or agent or to on his behalf knowing that such had been a person on whom disability had been imposed resolution passed by Parliament of Article 81 of the Constitution period of such civic disability specified in such resolution had not expired;
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(d) that the candidate was at the time of his election a person disqualified for election as a
member.
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| 82Q. A High Court established by Article 154P of the Constitution shall have and exercise jurisdiction to try election petitions in respect of elections held under this Ordinance, where: such election petition is in relation to an election for any electoral area situated within such court's jurisdiction (hereinafter referred to as "High Court"). The jurisdiction of High Court in respect of its powers under this section shall be exercised by the Judge of such High Court and references in this Ordinance to "Election Judge" shall be construed accordingly. |
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| 82R. An election petition may he presented to the High Court by any one or more of the following persons, namely :
| | (a) some person claiming to have had a right to be returned or ejected at such election ; | | |
| | (b) some person alleging himself to have been a candidate at such election. | | |
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| 82S. All or any of the following reliefs to maybe which the petitioner may be entitled may be claimed in an election petition, namely a declaration that -
| | (a) the election in respect of any electoral area is void ; | | |
| | (b) the return of any person elected was undue ; | | |
| | (c) any candidate was duly elected and ought to have been returned. | | |
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| 82T.
| | (1) A petitioner shall join as respondents to his election petition-
| | | (a) where the petition, in addition to claiming that the election of all or any of the returned candidates is void or was undue, claims a further declaration that he himself or any other candidate has been duly elected, all the contesting candidates, other than the petitioner, and where no such declaration is claimed, all the returned candidates; and |
| (b) any other candidate or person against whom allegations of any corrupt or illegal practice are made in the petition. |
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| | (2) Any candidate not already a respondent to an election petition shall, upon application in that behalf made by him to the Election Judge, be entitled to be joined as a respondent to such petition : | | |
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| 82U. An election petition -
| | (a) shall state the right of the petitioner to petition under section 82R of this ordinance ; | | |
| | (b) shall state the holding and result of the election ; | | |
| | (c) shall contain a concise statement of the material facts on which the petitioner relies ; | | |
| | (d) shall set forth full particulars of any corrupt or illegal practice that the petitioner alleges, including as full a statement as possible or the names of the parties alleged to have committed such corrupt or illegal practice and the date and place of the commission of such practice, and shall also be accompanied by an affidavit in support of the allegation of such corrupt or illegal practice and the date and place of the commission of such practice , | | |
| | (e) shall conclude with a prayer as, for instance, that the election in respect of any electoral area should be declared void, and shall he signed by all the petitioners: | | |
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| 82V
| | (1) The Election Judge may, upon such terms as to costs or otherwise as he may deem fit, allow the particulars of any corrupt or illegal practice specified in an election petition to be amended or amplified in such manner as may in his opinion he necessary for ensuring a fair or effective trial of the petition so, however, that he shall not allow such amendment or amplification if it will result in the introduction of particulars of any corrupt illegal practice not previously alleged in the petition | | |
| | (2) Every election petition shall be tried as expeditiously as possible and every endeavor shall be made to conclude the trail of such petition within a period of six months after the date of the presentation of such petition. The Election Judge shall make his order deciding such petition without undue delay after the date of the conclusion of the trial of such petition. | | |
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| 82W. At the conclusion of the trial of an of Election petition the Judge shall determine whether the member whose return or election is complained of, or any other and what person, was duly returned or elected, or whether the election was void; and shall certify such determination in writing. |
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| 82X. At the conclusion of the trial of an election petition the election Judge shall also make a report setting out -
| | (a) whether any corrupt or illegal practice has or has not been proved to have been committed or with the knowledge and consent of any candidate at the election, or by his agent, and the nature of such corrupt or illegal practice, if any ; and | | |
| | (b) the names and descriptions of all persons, if any, who have been proved at the trial to have been guilty of any corrupt or illegal practice : | | |
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| 82Y.
| | (1) Any person dissatisfied with -
| | | (a) the determination of an Election Judge under section 82w; or |
| (b) any other decision or order of an Election Judge, |
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| | (2) Until rules are made under Article 136 of the Constitution pertaining to leave to appeal application made under this section, the rules made under that Article pertaining to application for special leave to appeal to the Supreme Court shall apply in respect of every leave to appeal application made under this section. | | |
| | (3) Every application under this section shall be heard by the Supreme Court and shall, as far as practicable, he given priority over other business of that Court. The Court may give all such directions as it may consider necessary in relation to the hearing and disposal of each application. | | |
| | (4) The Attorney-General shall be entitled to appear or be represented at any application for leave to appeal or at any appeal under this Part. | | |
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| 82Z.
| | (1) At the time of the filling of the application under section 82Y or within three days afterwards, security for the payment of all costs, charges and expenses that may become payable by the applicant shall be given on behalf of the applicant. | | |
| | (2) The security shall be an amount of not less than ten thousand rupees. The security required by this section shall be given by a deposit of money, | | |
| | (3)If the security as in this section provided is not given by the applicant, no further proceedings shall be had on such application and the respondent may apply to the Supreme Court for an order directing the rejection of such application and for the payment of the respondent's costs. The costs of hearing and deciding such application shall be paid as ordered by the Supreme Court, and in default of such order shall form part of the general costs of the appeal. | | |
| | (4) The deposit of money by way of security for the payment of the costs, charges and expenses payable by the applicant shall be made by payment to the Registrar of the Supreme Court which shall be vested in and drawn upon from time to time by the Chief Justice for the purposes for which security is required by this section. | | |
| | (5) The Registrar of the Supreme Court shall keep a book open to the inspection of all parties concerned in which shall be entered from time to time the amount and the application to which it is applicable. | | |
| | (6) Money so deposited shall, if and when the same is no longer needed for securing the payment of the costs, charges and expenses payable by the applicant, be returned or otherwise disposed of as justice may require by order of the Chief Justice. | | |
| | (7) Such order may be made after such notice of intention to apply and proof that all just claims have been satisfied or otherwise sufficiently provided for as the Chief Justice may require. | | |
| | (8) Such order may direct payment to the party in whose name the same is deposited or to any person entitled to receive the same . | | |
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| 82AA.
| | (1)upon leave to appeal being granted the Registrar of the supreme court shall enter the petition in the roll of pending appeals, and the matter of the appeal shall come up for hearing before a bench of three judges of the Supreme court without further notice to the parties concerned in accordance with the directions given to such Registrar by the Chief Justice. | | |
| | (2) The Supreme Court may of its own motion or on an application of a party of such appeal and with reasonable notice to the other parties concerned, accelerate the hearing of such appeal, upon such terms as to the cost of appeal as it may think fit. | | |
| | (3) When the appeal comes up for hearing the appellant shall he heard in support of the appeal and the respondents against the appeal. | | |
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| 82AB.
| | (1) The Supreme Court may, upon hearing the parties to the appeal affirm, vary or reverse the determination or decision of the Election Judge to which the appeal relates. | | |
| | (2) Where the Supreme Court reverses on appeal the determination of the Election Judge under section 82w, the Supreme Court shall decide whether the member whose return or election was complained of in the election petition, was duly returned or elected, or whether the election was void, and a certificate of such decision shall he issued by the Supreme Court. | | |
| | (3) The Supreme Court may, in the case of any appeal order that the election petition to which the appeal relates shall be tried anew in its entirety or in regard to any matter specified by the Supreme Court and give such directions in relation thereto as the Supreme Court may think fit. | | |
| | (4) The Supreme Court may make any order which it may deem just as to the costs of the appeal and as to the costs of, and incidental to, the presentation of the election petition and of the proceedings consequent thereon, and may by such order reverse or vary any order, as to costs made by the Election Judge ; and the Supreme Court may make rules as to the award, taxation and recovery of costs in the Supreme Court. | | |
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| 82AC.
| | (1) Where no application is preferred against the determination of an Election Judge. under section 82w within the period hereinbefore specified in that behalf, the Election judge shall transmit to the President the certificate of such court issued under that section, together with the report of such Judge made under section 82x. | | |
| | (2) Where an application is preferred to the Supreme Court under section 82Y, the Election Judge shall transmit to the Supreme Court the certificate of the Election Judge issued under section 82w together with the report of the Election Judge made under section 82x. | | |
| | (3) Where the determination of the Election Judge is reversed by the Supreme court in appeal, the Supreme Court shall transmit to the President the certificate of the decision of that Court issued under section 82AB together with -
| | | (a) the report of the Election Judge made under section 82x, if it is in the opinion of the Supreme Court not affected by the decision in the appeal , or |
| (b) if the Supreme Court considers it necessary, a report in respect of the matters referred to in section 82x made by the `Supreme Court |
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| 82AD. Upon the transmission to the President of the certificate of the determination of an Election Judge or of the decision of the Supreme Court as required by section 82AC, the determination or decision, as the case may be, shall take effect and accordingly-
| | (a) the return or the election shall be confirmed ; or | | |
| | (b) the return or the election shall be altered in accordance with such determination or decision, as the case may be ; or | | |
| | (c) where the determination or the decision is to the effect that the election in respect of any electoral area is to be declared void, the President shall, within one month of the receipt of such certificate, by Order published in the Gazette require the holding of an election in respect of that electoral area. | | |
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| 82AE.
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| | | (a) The President shall, upon receipt of the report of the Election Judge or of the Supreme court transmitted to him under section 82AC forthwith cause a copy of the report, to be published in the Gazette. |
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| | (2) It shall be the duty of every registering officer forthwith to peruse every such report which is published in the Gazette under subsection (1), and forthwith to delete from the register of electors the name of every person appearing from the report to be incapable of voting at an election. | | |
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| 82AF
| | (1) Every election petition under this Ordinance shall be presented within twenty-one days of the date of publication of the result of the election in the Gazette : | | |
| | (2) An election petition presented in due time may, for the purpose of questioning the return or the election upon an allegation of a corrupt or illegal practice, be amended with the leave of the Election Judge within the time within which an election petition questioning the return or the election upon that ground may be presented. | | |
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| 82AG. No electors who has voted at an election: shall in any proceeding to question the election, be required state for which recognized political party or independent group he has voted. |
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| 82AH.
| | (1) On a scrutiny at the trial of an election petition the following votes only shall be struck off, namely the vote of any person-
| | | (a) whose name was not on the register of electors assigned to the polling station at which the vote was recorded ; |
| (b) whose vote was procured by bribery, treating, or undue influence ; |
| (c) who committed or procured the commission of personation at the election ; |
| (d) proved to have voted in more than one electoral area; |
| (e) who, by reason of the operation of paragraphs (e), (f), (g), (h), (i) and (j) of Article 89 of the Constitution, was incapable of voting at the election ; |
| (f) who, not being entitled to vote in person at the election by reason of subsection (1) of section 39B, voted in person at the election. |
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| | (2) The vote of a registered elector shall not, except in the case specified in paragraph (e) of subsection (1), be struck off at a scrutiny by reason only of the voter not having been or not being qualified to have his name entered on the register of electors. | | |
| | (3) On a scrutiny, any tendered vote proved to be a valid voter shall, on the application of any party to the petition, be added to the poll. | | |
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| 82AJ. The provisions of the Parliamentary Elections Petition Rules set out in the Fourth Schedule to the Parliamentary Elections Act, No. 1 of 1981, shall, mutatis mutandis, apply to, and in regard to the procedure and practice on election petitions under this Ordinance. |
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| 82AK. On an election petition the decision of a counting officer whether or not a ballot paper shall be rejected under section 63 shall not be questioned- |
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| 82AL. Where, upon the trial of an election petition respecting an election under this Ordinance, the Election Judge reports that a candidate at such election has been guilty by his by his agents of the offence of treating or undue influence or of any illegal practice in reference to such election, and the Election Judge further reports, after giving the Attorney-General an opportunity of being heard, that the candidate has proved to the court-
| | (a) that no corrupt or illegal practice was committed at such election by the candidate and the offences mentioned in the said report were committed contrary to the orders and without the sanction or connivance of such candidate ; and | | |
| | (b) that such candidate took all reasonable means for preventing the commission of corrupt and illegal practices at such election ; and | | |
| | (c) that the offences mentioned in the said report were of a trivial, unimportant and limited character; and | | |
| | (d) that in all other respects the election was free from any corrupt or illegal practice on the part of such candidate and of his agents, | | |
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| 82AM. Where, on application made, it is shown to an Election Judge or to the Judges of the Supreme Court, in the case of an appeal, by such evidence as seems to the Election Judge or the Judges of the Supreme Court sufficient-
| | (a) that any act or omission of a candidate at an election, or of any of his agents or other person, would, by reason of being a payment, engagement, employment, or contract in contravention of this Ordinance or of otherwise being in contravention of any of the provisions of this Ordinance, be but for this section an illegal practice ; and | | |
| | (b) that any such act or omission arose from inadvertence or from accidental miscalculations or from some other reasonable cause of a like nature, and in any case did not arise from any want of good faith, | | |
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Sri Lanka Consolidated Acts