IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH. C.W.P. No. 12835 of 2008 DATE OF DECISION : 01.12.2008 Harbans Kaur .... PETITIONER Versus State of Punjab and others ..... RESPONDENTS CORAM :- HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SATISH KUMAR MITTAL HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE JASWANT SINGH Present: Mr. D.S. Pheruman, Advocate, for the petitioner. Mr. N.D.S. Mann, Addl. A.G., Punjab, for respondents No.1 to 4. * * * SATISH KUMAR MITTAL , J. ( Oral ) The petitioner, who contested and elected as Panch of Gram Panchayat, Village Thothian, District Amritsar, against the seat reserved for `women', has filed this petition under Articles 226/227 of the Constitution of India for quashing the clarification issued by the Government vide its letter dated 27.5.2008 as well as for setting aside the election of respondent No.5 as Sarpanch of the Gram Panchayat. Undisputedly, the office of Sarpanch of the aforesaid Gram Panchayat is reserved for `women' category. It is the case of the petitioner that she is the only elected Panch from the category of `women' and respondent No.5, who has been elected as Panch against the seat reserved CWP No. 12835 of 2008 -2- for Scheduled Caste (women), being a Scheduled Caste, is not eligible to contest the election of the office of Sarpanch. This controversy has already been decided by this Court in CWP No. 13738 of 2008, titled as Sukhjit Kaur versus State of Punjab and others, decided on 5.8.2008, wherein it has been held that any woman, whether she is elected as a Panch from General category, women category or from the reserved category of Scheduled Caste (women), is fully eligible to contest the election of Sarpanch, if the same is reserved for `Women'. Accordingly, in view of the decision of this Court in the aforesaid CWP No. 13738 of 2008, there is no merit in this petition and the same is, hereby, dismissed. ( SATISH KUMAR MITTAL ) JUDGE December 01, 2008 ( JASWANT SINGH ) ndj JUDGE