In Brief
A presiding officer conducting the election for Mayor of Chandigarh Municipal Corporation invalidated eight ballots cast in favour of the appellant, claiming they were defaced, and declared the opposing candidate elected. The Supreme Court examined the ballots and video footage and found they were validly cast with a single vote each, bearing only the appellant's name in the upper half. The presiding officer had deliberately marked these ballots to justify invalidating them. The Court held this constituted electoral malpractice and misconduct exceeding the officer's statutory powers. It set aside the declared result, declared the appellant the rightful Mayor-elect (with 20 valid votes vs 16), and directed initiation of contempt proceedings against the presiding officer for making false statements on oath.
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