The Calcutta High Court disposed of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by three petitioners alleging that they are representing the villagers and the allegation is against the private respondents stating that after they have been elected as the Panchayat President their wealth has increased considerably.
The advocate appearing for the private respondents submitted that there is no genuinity in the present petition as all the three petitioners had contested the earlier election and the first petitioner lost the election against the private respondents, the second petitioner was the booth representative and the third petitioner contested the election and he was successful.
It is the submission of the advocate for the petitioners that the representation has been signed by several persons.
“Be that as it may, it is the only three persons who have come before this court and in the light of the facts which has been brought on record by the learned advocate appearing for the private respondents, this cannot be treated as a genuine public interest litigant as there appears to be personal and political rivalry between the private respondents and the writ petitioners”, the Division Bench of Chief Justice T. S. Sivagnanam and Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharyya observed.
However, the Court clarified that this will not prevent a genuine public interest litigation to expose his cost in the manner known to law.