Jammu and Kashmir Praja Sabha Election Rules

Legal Document No 53

(Extract)

I. No person shall be entitled to be registered as an elector on the Electoral Roll of a general or special constituency who:

1. is not a State-subject to any class as defined in Noti-fication I-L/1984, dated Jammu the 18th April 1927; or
2. has not attained the age of 21 years on the first day of Baisakh of the year in which the general elections are held; or
3. has been adjudged by a competent court to be of unsound mind; or
4. if a female, has not passed the Third Middle Examination or any other examination mentioned in Rule 11 t7).

(i) In the case of a general constituency:

1. is a Zaildar, or Safed-Posh, or Lambardar, and is not under suspension, or
2. is an Imam of a Mosque or Mufti or Qazi or an Adhishthata of a temple, or a Bhai or Granthi of a Gurdwara, or an ordained Minister of the Christian Church who has been acting as such for a period of not less than six months prior to first Baisakh of the year in which the general elections are held, or
3. is a recognised title-holder, or
4. is a retired or pensioned Officer, non-commissioned Officer or soldier or His Majesty's or His Highness' regular forces provided that he has not been discharged therefrom with ignominy.

The term "regular forces" used in clause 4 of the foregoing Rule shall include the subjects of Jammu and Kashmir State serving as commissioned officers and Indians of other ranks of the Royal Indian Army Service Corps and also the commissioned officers and Indian other ranks of the Animal and Mechanical Transport Sections of the Jammu and Kashmir Army, or
1. is a pensioner who receives a pension of not less than Rs. 10 a month from a Treasury in the State, or any other treasury, or
2. is a Doctor or Hakim or Vaid, or Lawyer, or School master actually practicing his profession within the State, or
3. has passed the Third Middle Examination, or passed the Budhiman, Rattan, Adib, Munshi, Moulvi, or Prajna examination, or some higher examination, or
4. pays a sum of not less than Rs. 20 per annum under one or more of the following heads:

1. land revenue on account of land owned by him;
2. rent on account on land held- by him as a tenant with a right of occupancy;
3. grazing fees payable to the Government, or is a Jagirdar, Muafidar or Guzarakhar holding an assignment of not less than Rs. 20 per annum, or

1. is the owner of immovable property, other than agricultural land, within the State, or of a boat or boats of the value of not less than Rs. 600, or
2. pays income-tax, or has throughout the twelve months preceding the date of the notification occupied as tenant in the constituency immovable property, not being land assessed to land revenue, of an annual rental value of not less than Rs. 60.

If any land or immovable property has been in possession of a mortgage for the whole of the year before the preparation of the Electoral Roll, such mortgagee and not the real owner shall be deemed to be the owner for the purpose of sub-rules 8(a) and (10).

Provided that no person shall be qualified as an elector:

1. in a Muslim constituency if he is not a Muslim;
2. in a Sikh constituency if he is not a Sikh
3. in a Hindu constituency if he is either a Muslim or a Sikh.

1. In case of the Jammu and Kashmir Tazimi Sardars constituencies, is a Tazimi Sardas.
2. In case of the Jammu and Kashmir Jagirdar, Muafidar or Mukarridar constituencies, is a Jagirdar, Muafidar or Mukarridar holding a Jagir, Muafi or Mukarri from the State of not less than Rs. 500 per annum.
3. In case of the Jammu and Kashmir Land-holders constituencies, is a holder of any land assessed to. land revenue of not less than Rs.250 per annum.
4. In case of the Jammu and Kashmir pensioners Constituency is a pensioner receiving Rs. 100 or more as pension.

Explanations

Where a Jagir, Mukarrari, Muafi or land is held Jointly by members of a joint family, the family shall be adopted as the unit or deciding whether any qualification exists and if it exists, the person qualified shall be, in the case of a joint Hindu: family, the Manager thereof, and in the case of any other joint family the member thereof authorised in that behalf by the family.

For the purpose of this rule, a person may be presumed to reside in a constituency if he owns. a family dwelling-house in the constituency and that house has not, during the twelve months preceding the date of the notification been let on rent.

III. 1. Where two or more persons are co-sharers in land assessed to land revenue, or in an assignment of land revenue, or in other immovable property, or in a tenancy, or in a Jagir, Mukarrari or Muafi every person shall be qualified as an elector who would be so qualified if his share in such land,. property, assignment or tenancy were held separately. The share of any such person who is under 21 years of age shall be deemed to be the share of his father, or if his father is dead, of his eldest brother, provided that his father or eldest brother, as the case may be, is a co-sharer with him in the property:

1. of times, the total revenue, assignment of land revenue or rent of tenancy is divisible by 20 or in the case of immovable property other than agricultural land as the number of time, the value of such property is divisible by 600;
2. in the case of special constituencies, the number of times the total of the amount of Jagir revenue or assignment of revenue, as the case may be is divisible by 500 in the case of constituencies of the Jammu and Kashmir Jagirdars, Muafidars and Mukarraridars or by 250 in the case of constituencies of Jammu and Kashmir land-holders. The co-sharers shall appoint by name the persons so entitled to vote as electors.

V. No person shall be entitled to vote at any election if on the date on which the poll is taken he is undergoing a sentence of imprisonment, or if he has been bound over to be of good behaviour and the period of the bond has not yet expired, or if he is disqualified for membership of the Praja Sabha.

QUALIFICATIONS OF CANDIDATES

VI. A person shall be eligible for election as member of the Praja Sabha for a general or special constituency if he is not subject to any of the disqualifications contained in section 28 of the Act, and

1. can read and write the Urdu language in any script, and is registered as an elector for that constituency, or, in, the case of a general constituency, for any other constituency in the Province, and in the case of a Muslim or Sikh constituency, he is himself a Muslim or Sikh, as the case may be, and in the case of a Hindu constituency, he is not a Muslim or Sikh.

For the purposes of this rule a Province shall mean either the Kashmir Province or the Jammu Province (inclusive of the Jagirs or Poonch and Chenani) as the case may be.