a plaint filed in the bangalore city civil court hauling up the bjp for failure to live up to their...

7/30/2019 A Plaint filed in the Bangalore City Civil Court hauling up the BJP for failure to live up to their electoral promises.

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IN THE COURT OF THE VACATION CITY CIVIL AND

SESSIONS JUDGE AT BANGALORE

ORIGINAL SUIT NO. OF 2013

BETWEEN:

1. Sri Abraham T.J.S/o Joseph T.A.Aged about 53 Years#2457, 16th "B" Main

H.A.L 2nd StageIndiranagarBangalore-560 008State of Karnataka Plaintiff No.1

2. Sri Mohan RajS/o RamuAged, MajorNo.49, 1st Main, 7th CrossB.Nagasandra, Yamalur Post

Bangalore560 037State of Karnataka Plaintiff No.2

3. Dr.S.M.GopalS/o Patel MuniyappaAged about 52 yearsSheshapur, Lakshmisagar Panchayat

Srinivaspur TalukKolar District563 127State of Karnataka Plaintiff No.3

4. Sri Jayarama H.VS/o Venkataiah H.KAged about 54 years#156, HottiganahosahalliChannapattanaRamanagaram571 501State of Karnataka Plaintiff No.4

5. Sri Nagesh.TS/o Thimmegowda

Aged about 46 years#141/D, HottiganahosahalliChannapattanaRamanagaram571 501State of Karnataka Plaintiff No.5


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6. Sri JayaramaiahS/o Late Sanjeevaiah

Aged about 41 years#57, VirupasandraRamanagaram571 511State of Karnataka Plaintiff No.6

7. Sri Suhail BaigS/o Jabbar BaigAged about 47 yearsNo. 46, Millers 2nd Cross Road

Benson TownJayamahalBangalore560 046State of Karnataka Plaintiff No.7

8. Sri Srinivasa B.VS/o Late VenkategowdaAged about 42 yearsNo. 256, 9th Main, Nagendra BlockBangalore560 085State of Karnataka. Plaintiff No.8

9. Sri S.SureshS/o S.SrinivasaiahAged about 43 yearsNo. 24-1-E, Basavanagudi RoadBangalore560 004State of Karnataka Plaintiff No.9

10. Sri Kumaraswamy M.C.S/o ChinnappaiahAged about 37 years

No. 208, 8th

Main4th Stage BEML layoutRajarajeshwarinagarBangalore560 098State of Karnataka Plaintiff No.10

11. Sri RamakrishnappaS/o VenkatappaAged about 52 yearsNo.12, Subbaiah Garden LayoutHongasandraBangalore560 068

State of Karnataka Plaintiff No.1112. Sri Srinivasa H.R.

Late H.T.RamaiahAged about 49 yearsNo. 16/1, Jain Temple StreetV.V.PuramBangalore560 004

Plaintiff No.12


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State of Karnataka

13. Sri S.RavichandranS/o ShivadanamAged about 36 yearsNo.365, Venkataswami Reddy LayoutB.NarayanapuraBangalore560 048State of Karnataka Plaintiff No.13

AND:

1. Bharatiya Janata PartyRepresented by its PresidentSri Rajanath SinghPresident at present as also duringMay, 2008Having its Central Head Office at#11 Ashoka RoadNew Delhi 110 001 Defendant No.1

2. Sri D.V.Sadananda GowdaPresident during May, 2008

Bharatiya Janata Party, KarnatakaandFormer Chief Minister of Karnataka -Sworn in as the 20th Chief Minister(04-Aug-2011 to 12-Jul-2012)Having its Head office at:

Jagannatha Bhavana#48, Temple Street, 11th CrossMalleshwaramBangalore560 003

State of Karnataka Defendant No.2

3. Sri Pralhad JoshiPresidentBharatiya Janata Party, KarnatakaHaving its Head office at:

Jagannatha Bhavana#48, Temple Street, 11th CrossMalleshwaramBangalore560 003State of Karnataka Defendant No.3

4. Sri B.S.YediyurappaFormer Chief Minister of Karnataka Sworn in as the 19th Chief Minister(30-May-2008 to 31-Jul-2011)Bharatiya Janata Party, KarnatakaHaving its Head office at:

Jagannatha BhavanaDefendant No.4


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#48, Temple Street, 11th CrossMalleshwaram

Bangalore 560 003State of Karnataka

5. Sri Jagadish Shivappa ShettarChief Minister of KarnatakaSwornin as the 21st Chief MinisterBharatiya Janata Party, KarnatakaHaving its Head Office at

Jagannatha Bhavana

#48, Temple Street, 11th CrossMalleshwaramBangalore 560 003State of Karnataka Defendant No.5

MEMORANDUM OF PLAINT UNDER ORDER VII RULE 1 OF

THE CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE, 1908

Address for service of Notice:1. The addresses of the parties for the purpose of service of all

summons, notices etc., are as stated in the cause title above.

2. The plaintiffs are represented by their counsel, SriK.V.Dhananjay, Sri M.P.Srikanth, Miss Anupama.R and Sri

Gopala Krishna, Advocates, No.296, Magadi Main Road,

Kamakshipalya, Bangalore560 079. Service of notices, etc.,

upon the plaintiffs may also be effected through service to

their counsel.

3. The defendants may be served at the address as mentioned inthe cause title above.

About the Plaintiffs, in short:

4. The plaintiffs are citizens of India and residents in the Stateof Karnataka. They are duly registered to vote in the elections

that are conducted by the Election Commission of India to

the House of the People and to the Legislative Assembly of

Karnataka. They had voted in the last elections held on 10-


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May-2008, 16-May-2008 and 22-May-2008 to the Legislative

Assembly Constituencies of Karnataka.

The plaintiffs vote for the Defendant No.1 party:

5. The subject matter of this suit concerns the elections thatwere held to the 13th Vidhana Sabha of Karnataka on 10-

May-2008, 16-May-2008 and 22-May-2008. Prior to a

decision made by the plaintiffs on who would deserve their

vote, they were, as a class, provided by the Bharatiya Janata

Party with a comprehensive booklet containing the election

promises pledged by it. On the faith induced by the Bharatiya

Janata Party that its election promises were solemn and that

it would perform those promises if it was voted to power in

the State and that the voters should vote for the Bharatiya

Janata Party with absolute confidence that its promises

would be kept to the extent pledged in its promise sheet,

these plaintiffs proceeded to vote for the candidates set up by

the Bharatiya Janata Party in their respective constituencies

in the elections held in May, 2008 to the Legislative Assembly

Constituencies of Karnataka.

About the defendant, in short:

6. The Bharatiya Janata Party is a political party which is dulyregistered in terms of the applicable laws and regulations. In

the elections held on 10-May-2008, 16-May-2008 and 22-

May-2008 to the Legislative Assembly Constituencies of

Karnataka, the Bharatiya Janata Party had emerged as the

largest political party and thereby, had assumed executive

power in the State of Karnataka during the term of the 13th

Vidhana Sabha.

The subject of this suit - the defendant political party

breaches most of its solemn election promises and its legal

liability thereto:

7. Once elected to power, without any lawful excuse, thedefendant political party, the Bharatiya Janata Party has


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proceeded to breach most of the solemn election promises

that were previously pledged by it and which promises had

induced these plaintiffs to cast their valuable votes in favour

of candidates set up by the Bharatiya Janata Party in the

elections to the 13th Vidhana Sabha. Throughout the term of

the 13th Vidhana Sabha, the Bharatiya Janata Party has

chosen to wantonly, deliberately, recklessly and intentionally

disregard the very election promises that constituted the

basis for it to secure the highest number of seats in the 13th

Vidhana Sabha and which promises were instrumental in

forbearing these plaintiffs from casting their votes in favour of

candidates or parties that were the contesting rivals of the

Bharatiya Janata Party (referred to hereinafter as the BJP,

for short).

Representative nature of this suit:

8. The cause of action as pleaded herein is largely of a publicnature and though the plaintiffs could have individually

shown that they have sustained damages and could have

thereby elected to seek damages individually against the BJP,

they have chosen, without abandoning their individual rights

and claims against the defendants, to collectively plead the

cause of action as stated in the plaint as members of a class.The plaintiffs have therefore, preferred an accompanying

application and have thereby sought the leave of this Honble

Court to prosecute the instant suit as a suit for the benefit of

a specific, definite and identifiable members of the public in

terms of Section 91 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908.

9. The class at issue are all voters who were eligible to cast votesin the elections held to the 13th Vidhana Sabha of Karnataka

on 10-May-2008, 16-May-2008 and 22-May-2008 and who,

more importantly, did cast votes in favour of candidates set

up by the BJP political party by principally relying upon the

BJPs election promises as stated in its promise sheet and

who have since been injured and have sustained damages by


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reason of the BJPs wanton breach of those very election

promises while granted the power and opportunity to perform

it all. A separate application in terms of Order 1 Rule 8 is

enclosed to this plaint and leave has been sought accordingly

to prosecute the subject matter of this suit in a representative

capacity.

Relief is limited to damages only and no specific performance

is sought herewith:

10. The plaintiffs do not seek any specific performance by thedefendants and the relief sought herein is limited to the

seeking of compensatory damages and punitive damages by

reason of the egregious breach of contract by the BJP of

several of its election promises or, in the alternative, by

reason of the injury sustained and damages incurred by the

plaintiffs owing to the fraudulent misrepresentation made by

the BJP in the name of its election promises.

The law concerning elections to the Legislative Assembly of a

State of our Union:

11. The Constitution of India is the supreme law and the charterfor the establishment of the Republic of India. Article 168 of

the Constitution of India provides for the establishment of a

Legislature in a State. The State of Karnataka is notifiedunder the Constitution of India as Entry 8 to the First

Schedule to the Constitution (Articles 1 and 4 of the

Constitution of India).

12. Article168of the constitution specifies that the Legislature ofthe State of Karnataka shall consist of the Governor, the

Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council.

13. Article 170of the Constitutionspeaks of the composition of theLegislative Assemblies. It states, in pertinent part, that:

Article 170 - Composition of the Legislative

Assemblies


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(1)Subject to the provisions of Article 333, the Legislative

Assembly of each State shall consist of not more than five

hundred, and not less than sixty, members chosen bydirect election from territorial constituencies in the State;

(2) For the purposes of clause (1), each State shall be

divided into territorial constituencies in such manner that

the ratio between the population of each constituency

and the number of seats allotted to it shall, so far as

practicable, be the same throughout the State.

14. As such, under the terms ofArticle 170of the Constitution ofIndia, the members of a Legislative Assembly to a State are to

be chosen by direct election from territorial constituencies in

the State.

15. Article 172 of the Constitution speaks of the duration of theState Legislature. In pertinent part, it reads:

Article 172. Duration of State Legislatures -(1) Every Legislative Assembly of every State, unless

sooner dissolved shall continue for five years from the

date appointed for its first meeting and no longer and the

expiration of the said period of five years shall operate as

a dissolution of the Assembly:

16. As such, the duration of a legislative assembly in a Stateconstituted after a direct election by the people of that State

is fixed at a period of 5 years in terms of Article 172 of the

Constitution of India.

17. Article 324 of the Constitution establishes an electionCommission for India and reads as under:

Article 324. Superintendence, direction and control

of elections to be vested in an Election Commission

(1) The superintendence, direction and control of the

preparation of the electoral rolls for, and the conduct of,

all elections to Parliament and to the Legislature of every

State and of elections to the offices of President and Vice

President held under this Constitution shall be vested in

a Commission referred to in this Constitution as the

Election Commission.
http://indiankanoon.org/doc/444962/http://indiankanoon.org/doc/456234/http://indiankanoon.org/doc/359300/http://indiankanoon.org/doc/359300/http://indiankanoon.org/doc/456234/http://indiankanoon.org/doc/444962/


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18. Accordingly, the responsibility for the conduct of the electionto a State Legislative Assembly is vested in the Election

Commission of India. Articles 326, 327 and 328may also be

noted:

Article 326 - Elections to the House of the People

and to the Legislative Assemblies of States to be on

the basis of adult suffrage: The elections to the House

of the People and to the Legislative Assembly of every

State shall be on the basis of adult suffrage; that is to

say, every person who is a citizen of India and who is notless than twenty one years of age on such date as may

be fixed in that behalf by or under any law made by the

appropriate legislature and is not otherwise disqualified

under this constitution or any law made by the

appropriate Legislature on the ground of non-residence,

unsoundness of mind, crime or corrupt or illegal practice,

shall be entitled to be registered as a voter at any such

election.

Article 327-Power of Parliament to make provision

with respect to elections to Legislatures: Subject to

the provisions of this constitution, Parliament may from

time to time by law make provision with respect to all

matters relating to, or in connection with, elections to

either House of Parliament or to the House or either

House of the Legislature of a State including the

preparation of electoral rolls, the delimitation of

constituencies and all other matters necessary forsecuring the due constitution of such House or Houses.

Article 328 - Power of Legislature of a State to

make provision with respect to elections to such

Legislature:Subject to the provisions of this Constitution

and in so far as provision in that behalf is not made by

Parliament, the Legislature of a State may from time to

time by law make provision with respect to all matters

relating to, or in connection with, the elections to theHouse or either House of the Legislature of the State

including the preparation of electoral rolls and all other

matters necessary for securing the due constitution of

such House or Houses.

19. Accordingly, in pursuance of the power under Article 327 ofthe Constitution of India, the Parliament of India has passed


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two special statutes to govern and to regulate the conduct of

elections to the Parliament and to the State Legislature the

Representation of People Act, 1950 and the Representation of

People Act, 1951.

20. It is too well-established that the right to vote is a creature ofa statute. Section 15of the Representation of People Act, 1950

mandates the preparation of an electoral roll for every

constituency. It reads as under:

Section 15 - Electoral roll for every constituency:

For every constituency there shall be an electoral roll

which shall be prepared in accordance with the

provisions of this Act under the superintendence,

direction and control of the Election Commission.

Assembly constituencies in Karnataka:

21. Further, Section 7(3)of the Representation of People Act, 1950provides that the extent of each assembly constituency in a

State shall be as determined by the orders of the Delimitation

Commission of India made under the provisions of the

Delimitation Act, 2002. Further, the territory of the State of

Karnataka has been divided into 224 assembly constituencies

in terms of Entry No.12 to the Second Schedule to the

Representation of People Act, 1950.

About the defendant political party, Bharatiya Janata Party:

22. Further, Part IVA of the Representation of People Act, 1951regulates the establishment, conduct and operation of

political parties. Accordingly, in terms of Section 29A of the

Representation of People Act, 1951 any association or body of

individual citizens of India may register itself with the

Election Commission of India subject to compliance with the

specified regulations and conditions. The Bharatiya Janata

Party is one of hundreds of political parties so registered with

the Election Commission of India.


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23. Further, the Election symbols (Reservation and Allotment)Order, 1968 issued by the Election Commission of India in

terms of Article 324 of the Constitution of India provides in

Order 6Athereof that a political party may be recognized as a

national party subject to fulfillment of certain conditions. It

says:

6A. Conditions for recognition as a National

party. A political party shall be treated as a

recognized National party, if, and only if

either (A) (i) the candidates set up by it, in any four or

more States, at the last general election to the House of

the People, or to the Legislative Assembly of the State

concerned, have secured not less than six per cent of the

total valid votes polled in their respective States at that

general election; and

(ii) in addition, it has returned at least four members to

the House of the People at the aforesaid last general

election from any State or States;

or

(B) (i) its candidates have been elected to the House of the

People, at the last general election to that House, from at

least two per cent of the total number of parliamentary

constituencies in India, any fraction exceeding one-half

being counted as one; and

(ii) the said candidates have been elected to that Housefrom not less than three States.

24. Accordingly, Entry 2 to Table 1 in NotificationNo.56/2003/Jud-111 dated 23-Oct-2003 issued in connection

with the aforesaid provision describes the Bharatiya Janata

Party as a national party. It says:

Table1

National Parties

Sl.No.

National Parties SymbolReserved

Address

2. Bharatiya Janata Party Lotus No.1, AshokaRoad New Delhi

110 001


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25. The Bharatiya Janata Party appears to be organized as a bodyof persons though the precise nature of the arrangement

between such persons is not known to the plaintiffs.

The voter details of the plaintiffs:

26. The plaintiffs in the present plaint have secured theirregistration in the rolls to certain assembly constituencies in

the State of Karnataka in terms of the controlling law, the

Registration of Electors Rules, 1960. Their voter information as

reflected through the means of a voter identity card issued by

the Election Commission of India is as under:

SlNo

Name of the Plaintiff Registered tovote in the

Stateassembly

Constituencyof

Voteridentificatio

n numberprovided bythe ElectionCommission

of India.

1. Sri Abraham T.J. No.161C.V.RamanNagara

WZU3171758

2. Sri Mohan Raj No.174Mahadevpura

3. Dr.S.M.Gopal No.144Srinivasapura

RCS7656044

4. Sri Jayarama.H.V. No.185Channapattana

XDH2507622

5. Sri Nagesh T. No.185Channapattana

XDH2507176

6. Sri Jayaramaiah No.182 Magadi WUF34261337. Sri Suhail Baig No.162

Shivajinagara

AKB0476768

8. Sri Srinivasa.B.V No.l70Basavanagudi

XHL28679

9. Sri S.Suresh No.169Chikkpet

YUZ1710862

10. Sri Kumaraswamy.M.C No.154Rajarajeshwari-

REJ6112551


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nagar

11. Sri Ramakrishnappa No. 175Bommanahalli

UHN4199246

12. Sri Srinivasa.H.R. No.169Chikkpet

YUZ3429248

13. Sri S.Ravichandran No.151K.R.Puram

UZJ0418616

27. The copies of the voter identification cards issued by theElection Commission of India to each of the plaintiffs to this

suit are produced herewith and marked as:

Sl.No.

Plaintiff Document No.

1. Sri Abraham T.J 1.2. Sri Mohan Raj 2.3. Dr.S.M.Gopal 3.4. Sri Jayarama.H.V 4.5. Sri Nagesh.T 5.6. Sri Jayaramaiah 6.7. Sri Suhail Baig 7.8. Sri Srinivasa.B.V 8.9. Sri S.Suresh 9.10. Sri Kumaraswamy.M.C 10.11. Sri Ramakrishnappa 11.12. Sri Srinivasa.H.R. 12.13. Sri S.Ravichandran 13.


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Elections to the 13th Legislative Assembly constituencies of

Karnataka:

28. The elections to the 13th Legislative Assembly constituencies(referred to also as the 13th Vidhana Sabha, wherever the

context admits) of Karnataka was held on 10-May-2008, 16-

May-2008 and 22-May-2008.

Promise Sheet released by the BJP: (in the interest of

narration, past events of interest to this suit shall, wherever

appropriate, be described in the present tense):

29. Dozens of political parties were contesting against each otherin the elections to the 13th Vidhana Sabha. To distinguish

oneself from the rest, the BJP came out with a promise sheet

in a booklet specially prepared, printed and published by it.

30. A copy of the promise sheet issued by the BJP for the purposeof the elections to the 13th Vidhana Sabha is produced

herewith and marked as Document No. 14. The same is in

English. A copy of the said promise sheet published by the

BJP in Kannada is produced herewith and marked as

Document No.15.

The BJP spearheads its campaign across the State primarily

through its promise sheet:

31. At the very outset, the promise-sheet published by the BJPwas widely distributed by it across the State of Karnataka and

was also disseminated by it in the form of wide and recurring

public announcements and advertisements. Its agents,

workers and candidates took every available opportunity to

inform the voters about the solemn nature of the pledge

contained in its promise sheet. In other words, the very

canvassing by the BJP through its candidates in the elections

to the 13th Vidhana Sabha was made on the content of its

promise sheet.


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The Promises by the BJP in its promise sheet were designed

to invite serious attention:

32. It is noteworthy that the BJP in its promise sheet has madeseveral references to the mis-rule and mis-deeds of its rivals

in the earlier term when those parties had secured

administrative power in the State. In drawing such

comparison, it evidenced an intention that a voter who would

chance upon the BJPs promises would take its statements

with greater seriousness. That is, when a person A who

would criticize another B publicly for not having performed a

certain thing and then goes on to proclaim that he would do

that very thing with better and greater efficiency, a reasonable

person would only infer that A has done so for purpose of

inviting serious consideration by the voters to his claim in

contrast to the parallel claims that may also be made by B to

the public. As such, the election promises made by the BJP

demonstrate a desire for serious consideration by the voters

to the elections to the 13th Vidhana Sabha.

The BJP knew that a voter is expected to act reasonably:

33. Further, the BJP clearly knew that a voter acting reasonablyand complying with the following laws in force could not have

chosen to vote for any specific candidate on the basis of:

Factor: Forbidden by:

a) Bribe offered by acandidate.

Section 123(1) of theRepresentation of People Act,1951.

b) Undue influence Section 123(2) of theRepresentation of People Act,

1951.

c) Fear, threat of injury orsocial ostracism, ex-communication or

expulsion from thecommunity, fear of divinedispleasure or spiritualcensure.

Proviso to Section 123(2) ofthe Representation of PeopleAct, 1951.


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d) Religion, race, caste,community or language

Section 123(3) of theRepresentation of People Act,

1951.

e)34. As such, a voter acting reasonably and not breaching the

election laws in force would inevitably rely upon the election

promises made by the various political parties to choose that

party which, he thinks, would perform the pledged promises

upon coming into power and thereby secure the interests of

the community and the individuals within that community

that are of interest to that voter. Further, as a voter would

ordinarily lack the means to detect any fraudulent intent in a

partys promise sheet, he would obviously be in no position to

doubt the honesty with which such promises came to be

made.

The promise sheet was the product of a careful planning and

preparation:

35. In view of the fact that the election to the 13 th Vidhana Sabhawas duly notified well in advance and the prospect of the

happening of the said election was also anticipated well in

advance, the promise sheet prepared and published by the

BJP should be taken to be a product, the preparation of

which was attended by sufficient reflection, consideration and

deliberation.

The promise sheet seeks serious attention of all voters to the

elections to the 13th Vidhana Sabha:

36. The promise sheet begins by criticizing the rival politicalparties for their poor showing during their previous term ofgovernance. Thereby, the stage was set by the BJP to inform

the voters to the assembly constituencies that the promise

sheet published by the BJP was to be taken seriously. The

various promises by the BJP in its promise sheet may be

classified into two categories based on whether or not the


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extent of complete performance of a given promise was to be

expected within the 5-year term that is afforded to a political

party that is seated to power.

Specific, definite, limited and quantifiable promises that were

made by the BJP through its promise sheet as understood by

these plaintiffs as capable of performance and completion

within the 5-year term that it would enjoy should it emerge

successful in the elections: (the reference to actionable

promises throughout this plaint shall only mean the

following specific and quantifiable promises; however, this

understanding reached by these plaintiffs does not

necessarily bind the other members of the class which these

plaintiffs represent fresh plaintiffs who are added into this

suit may disagree with these plaintiffs and treat some of the

promises that these plaintiffs consider to be of a very general

nature as also capable of specific meaning in the context of

their special facts and circumstances)

To the Poor

1. We propose to recognize families with annual income uptoRs.30,000/- as extremely poor and those with annual

income above Rs.30000/- and upto Rs.60,000/- as poor.

2. Food grains at subsidized price. (Rice at Rs. 2/- per kg toextremely poor families).

3. Assistance to women upto Rs.1,000/- for each hospitaliseddelivery. (including private hospitals)

4. Bhagya Lakshmi scheme: Enhancing maturity value toRs.1.00 lakh from the present Rs.34,000/- when the girl

attains the age of 18 years.

5. Pension of Rs.400/- per month to helpless divorced womenand widows with children.

6. Allowance of Rs. 400 per month for physically handicapped.7. Waiver of loans under housing schemes like Ashraya, Indira

Awas etc., Future loan amount to be increased to


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Rs.40,000/-

8.

Provision of sites and houses to siteless and houselessfamilies during the next 5 years (15 lakh houses).

9. Cyber Cafe in every village: Fruits of I.T. must reach everyvillage. This will be made possible by providing in each

village;

A Community Hall, a Colour TV and a Computer (with

internet). This would provide Benefits like:

a. Education and Entertainmentb. Information on agriculture, weather, prices etc,c. Communication with government and others,d.Centre for social and cultural activities.

For Farmers

10. Free power to farmers having irrigation pump sets upto 10H.P. (about 16 lakhs).

11. Interest rate of 3% on crop loans to farmers borrowing fromnationalised banks and RRBs. Weavers, fishermen and

artisans also to be provided loans at 3%. Differential of

interest rates to be reimbursed to banks by the state

government.

12. To create a revolving fund of Rs. 500 crores for agriculturalsupport price.

13. Payment of production assistance of Rs.2/- per liter of milkdirectly to the milk producers.

For Women

14. Free education to girls upto degree class.15. Seed capital for women self help groups to be raised to Rs.

10,000 from Rs.5,000. Loans to SHGs at 6% interest.

16. Provision of a mobile telephone to SHGs, mahila mandals &youth clubs.


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For Scheduled Caste, Tribe, Backward Class and Minorities

17.

Adequate funds for welfare of SCs, STs, BCs and Minoritiesand an effective monitoring system for implementation of

programmes.

18. Increase in food charges in student hostels from Rs.500/- toRs.750/- per student per month.

For Youth

19. Jobs for youth: Skill development programmes forunemployed young men and women with a stipend of Rs.

1500 per month.

1.2 INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT Power

20. Doubling power production to 10,000 MW during the next 5years.

Roads and other connectivity

21. Master plan and setting up an appropriate authority toprovide good quality road connectivity throughout the state

during the next 5 years. (Rs.25,000 crores)

Kannada Language and Culture

22.

Encouragement to charitable organizations runninginstitutions such as orphanages, old age homes, hostels for

poor etc. (Rs.100 crores per year)

3.1 HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT

23. Total literacy within three years.24. "Bhagyalakshmi" Scheme for a female child, enhancement

of maturity value from Rs. 34,000 to Rs. 1,00,000.

25. Free education to women up to degree class.HEALTH CARE

26. Community Health Insurance will be provided to those uptoRs.60,000 annual income. Treatment for accident victims,


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emergency surgery, heart, kidney ailments, Cancer, Aids etc

will be covered.

27. Assistance to women upto Rs. 1,000 for each hospitaliseddelivery. (including private)

WOMEN'S WELFARE

28. Free education to all women till degree class.29. Self - help and sthree-shakti institutions to be

strengthened. The seed capital will be increased to Rs. 10,000

from 5,000.

30. Payment of allowance of Rs.400 per month to poor divorcedwomen till they remarry.

31. Maternity leave for government officials to be extended tofour months from 3 months.

YOUTH WELFARE

32. Jobs for youth - skil l development /certificationprogrammes on a large scale for young men and women. Rs

1500/- per month allowance during training period

3.7 SOCIAL WELFARE

33.

Improving management of SC/ST hostels. Enhancingallocation for food, from Rs.500 to Rs.750 per student per

month.

34. Valmiki Community Halls will be constructed in the districtswhere Valmiki population is high.

Labour Welfare

35. Family welfare fund for auto drivers. Compensation foraccidents to be enhanced to Rs. 1 Lakh from Rs. 50,000/-.

EMPLOYMENT GENERATION

36. Skill development / certification programmes in varioustrades; allowance of Rs.1500 per trainee per month.


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Our focus will be on

37.

Cyber Cafe in every village:38. Community Halls / Common utility centers in each village

will be provided with color TV and computer with internet

connection. This will serve educational and entertainment

needs of villagers, provide information on agricultural and

other matters and faster communication facilities. Local

people will be trained in computer literacy. This will also

expand employment opportunities.

39. Agriculture Revolving Fund with Rs. 500 crores for supportprices of agriculture produce.

40. Cold storages and processing units.3.11 DAIRY AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY

41. Production assistance of Rs.2 per liter of milk directly to themilk producers

3.12 FISHERIES

42. Increasing subsidised loans to poor fishermen to Rs.10,000.Future plans

43. Enabling 5 lakh employment opportunities, direct andindirect.

Steps to promote language and culture

44. Kalabhavan and auditoria facilities in all districts where theartistes can exhibit their talents round the year.

Review of charitable and religious endowment act

45. Grants to temples will be increased from Rs.500 per month toRs.1000 per month.


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General promises contained in the promise sheet:

37. The following promises of a general nature were contained inthe promise sheet of the BJP and the same did not influence

the voting behaviour of these plaintiffs as such promises were

not quantifiable and did not elicit any material reliance from

these plaintiffs to a degree sufficient to constitute an

expectation that upon a vote made in favour of the BJP in the

election, a binding obligation would be incurred by the BJP to

perform the following promises as the promises themselves

were of an indefinite timeframe or were vague, lacked

specificity or did not evince any objective standard with which

to adjudge performance, in the estimate of these plaintiffs.

To the Poor

1. 'Kanya Dana' scheme - assistance for mass marriages.For Farmers

2. Measures to provide support price to sericulture.3. Formulation of land acquisition policy to ensure right price to

farmers' lands and transparent acquisition procedures.

4. Removal of restrictions on conversion and sale of agriculturallands.

For Farmers

5. Measures to provide support price to sericulture.6. Formulation of land acquisition policy to ensure right price to

farmers' lands and transparent acquisition procedures.

7. Removal of restrictions on conversion and sale of agriculturallands.

For Scheduled caste, Tribe, Backward Class and Minorities

8. Increase in food charges in student hostels from Rs.500/- toRs.750/- per student per month.


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For Youth

9.

Set up a State Youth Council and formulate a Youth Policy.

10. Encouragement to sports; recognition of sports persons whohave won awards at national level.

11. Provision of quality education and health services for all.12. Maintain Karnataka's pre-eminent position in science and

technology including Information and Bio Technology.

Making Bangalore a World Class City

13. Directly elected Mayor.14. Metropolitan Planning Council.15. MetropolitanTransport & Traffic Authority.3.1 HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT

16. Interests of students of the state to be protected in admissionto professional courses.

YOUTH WELFARE

17. Financial assistance to one best Yuvaka Mandal and YuvathiMandal in each Panchayat area every year.

For Youth

18. Encouragement to sports; recognition of sports persons whohave won awards at national level.

Education Health

19. Provision of quality education and health services for all.20. Maintain Karnataka's pre-eminent position in science and

technology including Information and Bio Technology.

INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT POWER

21. Separate Rural Grids to improve power supply to rural areas.22. Encouragement to private investors.


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Water and Irrigation

23.

Providing safe and adequate drinking water to all towns andvillages as per prescribed standards.

24. Effective utilization of Karnataka's share of water underKrishna and Cauvery basins.

25. Kalasa Banduri drinking water project to be pursuedvigorously.

Roads and other connectivity

26. Exerting pressure on Central Government for development ofRailways, Airports and Ports.

Tourism

27. Developing a Master Plan to develop Karnataka as the leadingTourism State during the next 5 years.

Industrial Development

28. Measures to improve industrial climate in the state.29. Considering regional advantages in the state, promotion of

special industrial zones for Steel, Cement, Food Processing, IT

& BT.

Urban Development

30. Plans to develop towns and cities with necessaryinfrastructure and civic amenities.

31. Projects to upgrade infrastructure roads, water, sewerage,transport etc.

32. Action Plan to improve environment- greenery, lakes,pollution control.

Security

33. Formulate Security Policy for the state to contain terrorismand naxalism.


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34. Strategies to deal effectively with crime, maintain law andorder, provide protection to citizens.

Governance & Correcting Regional Imbalances

35. Measures to improve efficiency, reduce corruption andspeed up delivery of services.

36. Strengthening Lok Ayukta.37. Exert pressure on Central Government to confer special status

to Hyderabad Karnataka region under Art.371 on the lines of

Telengana and Vidharbha regions.

38. Involving non-governmental organizations in monitoringimplementation of government programmes

39. Implementation of Dr.D.M.Nanjundappa CommitteeReport to redress regional imbalances.

40. Issue of Multi-Purpose Identity Card.Kannada Language and Culture

41. Measures to protect Kannada Language and Culture.42. As per the Constitutional provisions, protection of cattle and

prevention of cow slaughter.

45 Classical language status for Kannada: Exert pressure onCentral Government.

46 Construction of memorial to Dr.Rajkumar.3.1 HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT48 Human resource development starts with the child. BJP is

committed to providing the facilities every child must enjoy.

49 Healthy childhood.50 Quality Education.51 Abolition of child labour.52 Prevention of child trafficking.


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53 Protection from HIV / AIDS / Polio and such other diseases.EDUCATION

54 Primary education in Kannada/ mother tongue, thereafter,facilities to learn English, Hindi and Computer skills.

55 Midday meals in schools to be made more nutritive andhealthy.

56 Providing necessary infrastructure in all schools includingfacilities of toilets.

57 More hostels for SC, ST and Backward classes at Taluk level.58 Progressive reduction of teacher - student ratio in schools to

enhance the quality of education.

59 More opportunities for vocational education.60 Pre university level student counseling centers to be

established at district centres.

61 Education fund to provide easy loans for students pursuinghigher education.

62 More autonomy to universities.63 Deserving private schools to be brought under grant - in- aid.64

Establishment of Sanskrit University.

65 Setting up Education Tribunals.HEALTH CARE

66 The aim is to provide good quality healthcare at affordablecost to everyone.

67 Protection from epidemics through immunization.68 Effective steps to reduce birth rate, infant mortality and

maternal mortality.

69 Encouragement to medical systems like ayurveda, naturecure & yoga.


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70 Measures to improve the quality of all medical andparamedical educational institutions.

71 Primary Health Centers at hobli level to be upgraded toCommunity Health Centers with 30 bed facilities.

72 Stringent measures to curb spurious and substandardmedicines.

73 Life saving drugs to be exempted from taxes.74 Round the clock services of mobile healthcare units at taluk

level and along highways.

75 Free eye camps and providing spectacles to senior citizens.76 Telemedicine system at PHC level.77 Free eye camps and providing spectacles to senior citizens.3.4 DRINKING WATER AND SANITATION

78. The aim is to provide safe drinking water to all habitations inurban and rural areas of the state.

79. Effective utilization of water resources.80. Measures to prevent pollution of water sources.81. Safety measures to prevent fluorosis and other water borne

diseases.

82. Promote water conservation measures such as rain waterharvesting, recharging of wells and recycling of water.

83. Measures to improve sanitation and promote awarenessthrough Sthree Shakthi and Self Help groups.

84. Underground drainage system to be introduced in a phasedmanner in all towns.

WOMEN'S WELFARE

85. Women to be involved in health, education and socialawareness programmes; they will be imparted vocational

training.


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86. Financial assistance to voluntary organizations to buildworking women's hostels.

87. Effective legislation for protection of women againstharassment at working places.

88. Incentives and guidance for women entrepreneurs.89. Appointment of women police staff to prevent atrocities on

women and establishment of more all - women police stations.

90. Assistance to mahila mandals and yuvathi mandals forconstructive activities.

91. Assistance for 'Sthree Shakti Bhavans in all taluka centers.92. Incentives for widow remarriage and intercaste marriages.93. Anganavadi workers and teachers to get more facilities.94. 33 percent of the individual oriented facilities in the SC/ST,

Minorities and Backward Classes Development Corporations

to be provided to women.

YOUTH WELFARE

95 The aim is to promote effective participation of youth innational reconstruction activities.

96 Establishment of 'State Yuva Parishat' on the lines ofNational Youth Council formed by the NDA Government at

Centre.

97 Formulation of State Youth Policy.98 Employment Information Centres and employment training

programmes.

99 Awareness programmes on clean environment and health.including diseases like Leprosy, AIDS, Polio, Malaria etc.,

100 Encouraging Sports and Cultural activities.101 Career guidance for education and employment at pre-

university education level.


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102 Training for competitive tests and examinations.103

Felicitation of patriots, paying tributes to soldiers whosacrifice their lives.

104 Creating awareness against social exploitation.105 Encouragement to vocational expertise by way of awards.3.5 SOCIAL WELFARE106 Waiver of loans under Ashraya housing scheme.107 Funds under special component plan meant for SC/STs not

to be diverted and the full amount to be spent through a single

window system.

108 Rules for issuing caste certificates to be simplified, and madevalid for ten years.

109 Housing to be provided for the houseless. Self employmentprogramme assistance, to the jobless on the basis of eligibility.

110 Atrocities on SC/ST population will be dealt with severely byestablishing vigilance cells which include peoples

representatives at district level.

111 Action to fill up back log vacancies on priority.112 Internal reservations among SC/STs to be reviewed.113 Awareness camps to highlight the rights of SCs/STs and the

programmes meant for them.

114 Special training for competitive exams.115 Funds for Banjara Welfare.116 More funds for backward class welfare.117 Backward class hostels to be improved.118 Encouragement for girls education.Minority Welfare

119 Financial assistance to set up training centres to promote self-


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employment.

120

Measures to improve quality of education in Urdu schoolsand to appoint Kannada teachers.

121 Urdu knowing Anganwadi worker to be appointed whereverrequired.

Welfare of the Physically Challenged

122 Government will provide assistance for life insurance andhealth insurance to physically challenged.

123 The nature and level of disability will be entered in the identitycard

124 Disabled will be given due representation in governmentemployment

125 A State level committee will oversee the implementation of therights of the physically challenged.

126 Provision of accessible infrastructure facilities in all publicoffices, schools, hospitals, etc.

Senior Citizens

127 Opening Geriatrics wing in district hospitals to attend totreatment of senior citizens.

128 Suitable concession for bus travel.Labour Welfare

129 Welfare programmes for workers in unorganized sectorsuch as, autorikshaw

130 Drivers, garment workers transport employees etc.131 Suitable action to redress the problems of contract and daily

wages employees.

132 Insist on the appointment of Kannadigas in Group 'D'posts in Central Government public undertakings in the state.

Welfare of Ex-servicemen


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133 Suitable assistance for employment, housing and children'seducation.

134 Enhancing compensation for families of ex- servicemen, whodie in action.

135 Establishing a Veera Soudha in each district; assistance toex-servicemen, organizations at district level.

136 Urban facilities in Rural Areas, village and townshipdevelopment programmes. to provide roads, housing, schools

etc.

Tourism :Tremendous potential to generate employment.

137 Emphasis on vocational education.138 Promote all applications for jobs through on-line process and

cut down application fee.

3.9 RURAL DEVELOPMENT

Our focus will be on

139 Development of rural infrastructure during next 5 years -roads, water, power and communication.

140 Improving finances of Panchayat Raj Institutions. The 3rdFinance Commission was appointed by the last coalition

government to suggest ways and means to improve the

financial conditions of local bodies.

141 Plans to extend Business Process Outsourcing (Call centers)to semi- urban and rural areas - will generate employment.

Reforms in Land use

142 Agricultural Products Exchanges with a view to get themaximum price.

143 Provide loans at lower interest rates, under agreement ofpurchase of the produce.

144 Effective implementation of crop insurance scheme.


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145 Subsidy for purchase of tractor & trailers.146

Quality electricity supply to irrigation pumpsets.

147 Extend Drip irrigation concession to the entire state.148 Special attention to sugarcane. Higher support price.Horticulture

149 Priority to marketing facilities including processing unitand cold storages.

150 Encouragement to Coconut, Areca and Cashew.Institutionalizing the support price system.

151 Problems of small growers of coffee, tea, coca, cardamom,pepper, tobacco and rubber to be addressed.

152 Encouragement to export of flowers, fruits, vegetables andtheir seed production.

Sericulture

153 Measures to improve sericulture farming and support priceprovision.

3.11 DAIRY AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY

154 Nutritious animal feeds at low cost.155 Development of highly productive breeds.156 Services of veterinary doctors and livestock inspectors to be

extended to more areas.

157 Protection of cattle and prevention of cow slaughter, as per theConstitutional provisions.

3.12 FISHERIES

158 Construction and maintenance of jetties, cold storages andice plants, housing for fishermen, fisheries, roads,

simplification of accident insurance rules, encouraging inland

fisheries.

159 Diesel subsidy and concessions for mechanised boats.


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160 Power supply at concessional rates to ice plants and coldstorages.

3.13 CO-OPERATION

161 Small farmers in rural and semi-urban areas are dependenton cooperative societies for loans. To facilitate low interest

rates and easy loans, the present three tier system of

agriculture refinancing system will be reduced to two- tier.

162 Responsibility to co-operative societies to oversee the regularpayment of salaries to their employees.

163 Strengthening democratic principles and enabling co-operative institutions to compete with private sector.

164 Encourage co-operative societies auditing by charteredaccountants.

3.14 ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION & FORESTS

165 The goal is to achieve sustainable developmentEnvironment Protection

166 Action to prevent encroachments and pollution of watersources.

167 Environment protection to be included as a subject for studyin High Schools.

168 Encouragement to cleaner production techniques.169 Action to discourage use of plastic.170 Support to Environment protection activities by NGOs.171 Priority to air pollution prevention.172 Encouragement for production of bio diesel and bio-energy.

Support to growing crops like Jatropa, Pongamia, Mahua, and

Neem.

173 Support to production of energy from urban waste throughNanotechnology and other means.


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Forest Development

174

Encouragement to Social Forestry.

175 Maintain ecological balance by developing multi-cultureplantations in place of mono- culture of Acacia or Eucalyptus.

176 Encouragement to growing medicinal plants.177 In accordance with the unanimous resolution of the state

Legislature, long standing cultivators living in forest lands will

be protected.

178 We are committed to comprehensive forest development andforest protection.

3.15 URBAN DEVELOPMENT

179 Safe and adequate drinking water.180 Sanitation and underground drainage.181 Quality roads and footpaths.182 Street lamps to every road.183 Improvement of waste disposal system.184 Competitive public transport system providing opportunities

to private sector.

Programmes for Urban Poor

185 Improving education and healthcare facilities.186 Housing facilities.187 Providing employment opportunities through vocational

training facilities.

Housing

188 Plans to provide affordable housing facilities to all weakersections including slum dwellers in next 5 years.

189 Provision of basic amenities in slum areas.190 Land use conversion rules will be simplified.


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Urban Governance

191

Decentralization of administrative and financial authority tourban local bodies.

192 Direct election to the post of Mayor in corporation cities.193 Ward committees will be established for better citizen

participation.

194 E-governance for better services.195 Simplification of property tax system.196 Improve security system for protection of citizens.197 Constitution of Citizen Advisory Committees, including

experts for better administration and performance

monitoring.

3.17 INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT Power

198 Encourage private participation in power production.199 Reduce transmission and distribution losses.200 Promotion of renewable energy sources.201 Exclusive Power Generation Unit for Bangalore3.18 TOURISM

Future plans

202 Provision of good and affordable tourist facilities.203 Good roads to tourism spots.204 Security to tourists.205 Production of good information literature and appointment

of knowledgeable guides.

206 Encourage regional specialties.3.19 DRINKING WATER AND IRRIGATION

207 Provide safe drinking water to all rural and urban areas.208 Take measures for utilizing our irrigation capacity fully.


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209 Utilize our share of water in Krishna and Cauvery basins.210

Network the westward rivers for efficient water managementso that the coastal fresh water requirements for drinking,

irrigation, and fisheries are met.

211 Renovation of irrigation canals for efficient utilization.212 Complete KalasaBanduri project implementation.213 Improvement and completion of canal distribution network

in all command areas.

214 Suitable policy and steps for integrated water resourcesmanagement.

215 Formation of water resources regulation authority.216 Promotion of water users associations and federations at all

levels.

Minor Irrigation

217 Rejuvenation of tanks, reservoirs and Kalyanis for minorirrigation.

218 Ground water recharge to prevent depletion of ground water.219 Strengthening water user associations for efficient water

management.

3.20 ROAD NETWORKING

220 In today's world good roads are a sign of civilized progress.Our aim is to expand the road network and improve the

quality of roads.

221 A master plan will be prepared to develop a time boundprogramme of networking roads between districts and State

Capital, Taluks and Districts, Villages and Taluks.

234 Formation of ring roads in cities wherever required.235 Encourage private participation in road development,

including toll roads.


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236 Involve local residents in acquiring land for widening existingroads.

237 Encourage healthy competition by allowing private busesalong the nationalised routes, wherever necessary.

238 Provide rest houses, along National and State Highways.Toilets and Bathroom facilities to women passengers in

particular.

239 Measures to reduce vehicular air pollution, encourage use ofLPG/CNG fuel, and bio-fuels.

240 Improve railway network- pressure on central government.241 Intra-state aviation development encouragement to private

sector.

3.21 SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Towards knowledge society242 The State is proud of our scientists who have placed Karnataka

in the forefront of the scientific field internationally.

243 The government has a role to inspire the scientific communityand take the research from lab to land. The benefit of

research should reach the farmers.

244 Promotion of E-Governance system in the functioning of thegovernment departments so as to have transparency and

speed in administration.

245 Every panchayat and municipality will become an e-sevacenter where information about different public services can

be accessed.

246 Technology parks will be established in all districts.247 Knowledge workers and skilled technicians will be produced

in good number to cater to the knowledge based Industries.

3.22 INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT

248 The aim is to create an enabling environment for industry toflourish in the state and take Karnataka to the top position in


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industrial development in the country.

Measures to promote industrial growth

249 Increase the pace of infrastructure provision.250 Plans to rejuvenate small-scale industries.251 Captive power plants of industries to be exempted from taxes.252 Karnataka to be further developed as a center of IT/BT,

pharmaceutical and electronic industries.

253 Encouragement to NRIs and Non Resident254 Kannadigas to invest in the state.255 Based on regional advantages in the state, promotion of

special industrial zones for-steel, cement, food-processing. IT

and BT.

Redressal of Weavers' problems

256 Regional specialties will be encouraged to produce valueadded products of consumer demand and setting up of

weavers parks.

257 Support to handloom products.258 Subsidies will be released regularly.259 Assistance to weavers in Healthcare, housing, education and

workshed facilities.

260 Group insurance will be provided to weavers.261 Loans at 4% interest.Steps to promote language and culture

262 Use of Kannada as official language at all levels.263 Construction of Memorial to Dr. Rajkumar.264 Encourage local artists and technicians.265 Monthly pension to aged artists.266 Efforts to protect the Folklore of the state.


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267 Priority to protect Hampi and its ancient monuments.268

Encouragement to Kannada activities beyond the stateborders. Kannada Bhavans in Talukas in border areas.

269 Action on report of committee under Mukyamantri Chandru.Films

270 All facilities will be extended to Kannada films shot inKarnataka.

271 Suitable reforms in tax exemptions to Kannada films.Review of charitable and religious endowment act

272 Assistance to revive rural temples.273 Aradhana Scheme will be strengthened.274 Resurrection of temples by involving local people.3.24 CORRECTING OF REGIONAL IMBALANCES

275 The present Karnataka state was formed in 1956 with regionsfrom Old Mysore Hyderabad-Karnataka, Bombay-

Karnataka, Madras Presidency and Kodagu. Even after 5

decades, the state suffers from regional disparities. BJP is

committed to improve the economic prosperity of all the

regions in the state.

276 We will exert bring pressure on the Centre to accord specialstatus to Hyderabad-Karnataka region under Article 371 of

Constitution of India on the lines of Telangana and Vidarbha

regions.

277 Dr.D.M.Nanjundappa committee Report on RegionalImbalances was kept in cold storage by the previous

Congress party led Government. It was

Shri.B.S.Yeddyurappa, as Deputy Chief Minister who in his

budget provided the required funds to implement the

recommendations of report and proposed a special

Development Plan. We are committed to the full


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implementations of these recommendations and correcting

the regional imbalances.

Measures to improve governance in backward regions.

Plans to augment resources

278 Maximize collections under Commercial Taxes, Excise,Transport and Stamps Registration by plugging loopholes for

evasion.

279 Examine possibility of further reforms under VAT280 Review of user charges for various services where there is

scope for additional revenue.

281 Cost cutting measures and improving project management.3.26 GOVERNANCE REFORMS

282 Political power is an opportunity to serve people. Goodgovernance depends on how government institutions are run.

Reforms measures

283 De-centralization of powers to local bodies, this will reducethe burden on the people to visit state headquarters.

284 Re- engineering the bureaucracy.285

Strengthening Lokayukta.

286 Speedy justice by Alternative Dispute Resolutionmechanisms.

287 Set up evening courts in all Taluk places.288 Construction of Suvarna Soudha in Belgaum.289 E-governance.Multi purpose identity cards

290 To confirm the identity of a person.291 Age proof292 To avail facilities provided by Govt.


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293 Easy documentation for purposes of securing loan,insurance and other financial transactions,

294 Protection against fraud295 Help to Police in crime detection.296 Authentic information to employers.297 Caste certification.

Seriousness behind the promise:38. In page 2 of the promise sheet, Section 1.1 begins with the

heading

1.1 PROMISE BACKED BY PERFORMANCE

In and of itself, the aforesaid title would commend itself to a

reader of the promise sheet that similar pledges that were

made earlier were performed by the party.

The plaintiffs materially rely upon the BJPs promise sheet:

39. The plaintiffs perused the promise sheet prepared, published,distributed and disseminated by the BJP. Its agents and

candidates for the various constituencies had repeatedly

stressed, in the public, that the promises contained in the

BJPs promise sheet were very different in nature from those

contained in the promise sheet of rival political parties and

that the specific promises that were contained in the BJPs

promise sheet were made only after a careful and honest

reflection and deliberation and that all of such promises as

were specific and time bound were meant to be implemented

within the 5-year term that would be available to the party

should it emerge as a winner in the ensuing elections.


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The plaintiffs were thereby induced to rely upon the

representations made by the BJP in its promise sheet to vote

for the candidates set up by it:

40. The plaintiffs did not have any means of discovering if thepromises made by the BJP in its promise sheet were in any

manner, dishonest. Further, considering the repeated and

recurring assurances that were made by the BJP, its agents

and candidates in regard to the solemn nature of its promises

and further considering the fact that its agents and

candidates had repeatedly stressed that the promises that

were made by the BJP were binding on it and that its rival

political parties had knowingly made false promises to

dishonestly induce their votes, the plaintiffs were compelled

to vote for the candidates set up by the BJP solely owing to a

belief that the promises made by it in its promise sheet were

binding upon the party should it be elected to power and thatthe party did not harbour any dishonest intention in the

making of such promises. As such, the plaintiffs were induced

to vote for the candidates set up by the BJP in the

constituencies in which the plaintiffs were entitled to cast

their vote.

Plaintiffs voted as under:

41. The plaintiffs, induced to vote for the candidates set up by theBJP and in materially relying upon the promises contained in

the BJPs promise sheet and in further expectation that those

promises were legally binding upon the BJP, proceeded to

vote as under:

Sl.No Plaintiff

Voted for the

candidate set upby the BJP

Constituency

Number andName

1. Sri Abraham T.J. S.Raghu No.161C.V.RamanNagara

2. Sri Mohan Raj Aravinda Limbavali No.174Mahadevapura


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3. Dr.S.M.Gopal Lakshmanagowda.M

No.144Srinivasapura

4. Sri Jayaram H.V. N.Ramesh No.185Channapattana

5. Sri Nagesh T. N.Ramesh No.185Channapattana

6. Sri Jayaramaiah P.Nagaraju No.182 Magadi7. Sri Suhail Baig Nirmal Surana No.162

Shivajinagara

8. Sri Srinivasa B.V. Ravisubramanya.L.A

No.l70Basavanagudi

9. Sri S.Suresh Dr.D.HemachandraSagar

No.169

Chikkpet

10. Sri KumaraswamyM.C.

M.Srinivas No.154

Rajarajeshwari-nagar

11. Sri Ramakrishnappa Satish Reddy.M No. 175Bommanahalli

12. Sri Srinivasa.H.R. Dr.D.HemachandraSagar

No.169Chikkpet

13. Sri S.Ravichandran N.S.Nandish Reddy No.151K.R.Puram

The BJP emerges as the winner in the elections held to the

13

th

Vidhana Sabha and forms the Government in the State ofKarnataka during the term thereof:

42. The BJP emerged as the single largest political party in theelections so held to the 13th Vidhana Sabha by contributing to

successful election for its candidates in 110 constituencies.

Without the support of any other political party but of 6

independently elected candidates, the BJP party formed the

government in the State of Karnataka and the Chief Ministerand Ministers to the State Cabinet were duly chosen and

installed by the BJP.

43. The Election Commission of India has published acomprehensive report on the outcome of the elections to the


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13th Vidhana Sabha. A copy of the said comprehensive report

published by the Election Commission of India on the

outcome of the elections to the 13th Vidhana Sabha is

produced herewith and marked as Document No.16.

The BJP wantonly, intentionally, fraudulently, deliberately or

recklessly fails to perform most of the promises that were

solemnly made by it in its promise sheet and on the strength

of which alone, the plaintiffs state that the party was voted to

power in the State:

44. The BJP grossly fails to perform most of the election promisesthat were made by it through its promise sheet after it

assumed power during the term of the 13th Vidhana Sabha.

The elections to the 14th Vidhana Sabha are scheduled to be

held on the 05-May-2013 and a notification thereto was

effected on 10-Apr-2013. Accordingly, with the coming into

force of the election code of conduct, the period that was

available to the BJP to reckon whether it had performed the

promises that were pledged by it during the previous

assembly elections has practically come to an end on 10-Apr-

2013. As of 10-Apr-2013, the BJP has failed to perform most

of the specific election promises that were made by it through

the promise sheet published by it for that purpose.

One instance of failed promise power generation was

promised to be raised to 10000 MW from the then 5000 MW.

The very capacity of the power plants in Karnataka did not

witness any increase beyond 6500 MW in the last five years:

45. A major promise made by the BJP in its promise sheet readas Doubling power production to 10000 MW during the

next 5 years. This promise should be taken as a blatant

fraud upon the voters in the State. Modern life and civilization

are nearly impossible to live without electricity and the BJP

clearly knew that. The power generation in the State is a

matter of profound and grave concern to nearly all the voters

in the State. In the past decade, frequent power cuts and


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outages across the State of Karnataka had created visible

frustration, economic losses and in many cases, ruin and

discontent amongst the voter population and the BJP should

be imputed with notice of such voter discontentment and

frustration at the relevant time.

46. Whether a voter lives in a city or in the villages, frequentpower cuts or absence of power is hugely disruptive to his

economic activity and it is only to be expected that a voter

would fervently want to know if a political party that seeks his

vote is even willing to increase electricity production in the

State. In this context, the promise made by the BJP that it

would double the production from 5000 MW to 10000 MW

should be seen as a blatant fraud upon the voters as the BJP,

while in power over the past five years did not even manage to

increase power generation from 5000 MW to 6500 MW.

47. The plaintiffs submit that they have made numerous queries,perused government data and reports and have therefore,

confirmed that the installed capacity itself in the State of

Karnataka as on 30-Apr-2013 does not exceed 6500 MW.

Also, there is a good deal of difference between installed

capacity and actual power generation. Rarely is a power plant

worked at 100% capacity and the actual generation therefore,

is estimated to be only around 6000 MW. This is a far cry

from the promised 10000 MW and the failure to generate

enough power in the State has contributed to definite and

quantifiable economic losses to these plaintiffs. Had these

plaintiffs, together with the rest of the voting population that

took the BJPs promises to be honest and therefore voted forthat party, been truthfully informed by the BJP that it does

not have the will, inclination or the ability to increase power

generation beyond 6500 MW over a period of five years, these

plaintiffs would never have cast their votes in favour of the

candidates set up by the BJP. Equally, these plaintiffs believe


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that the other voters in the State too might have refrained

from casting their vote in favour of the BJP had they been

truthfully, so informed. With such truthful disclosure, the

BJP might not have secured enough number of votes to

emerge as the largest political party in the elections to the

13th Vidhana Sabha. Assuming that some other political party

might have honestly sought to increase the power generation

in the State from 5000 MW to 7500 MW but altogether

omitted to state its promise in the belief that such a promisewould obviously fail to garner any attention amidst the tall

promise made by the BJP, these plaintiffs should be legally

held to have been deprived of the opportunity to be served by

a more honest political party which never did announce its

true intention and which therefore, could not appeal to the

votes of these plaintiffs. This is how, false election promises

genuinely hurt the voters and therefore, the very democratic

tradition, economic soundness, the mutual trust between the

administration and the people and the moral fabric of our

country.

48. The Karnataka Power Corporation Limited is a Governmentcompany that is engaged in the work of transmission of power

in the State of Karnataka. A report generated by it in respectof February, 2013 depicting the installed capacity across all

power generating plants in Karnataka is produced herewith

and marked as Document No.17. It may be noted from the

said document that the power generation across the State of

Karnataka from 29 different power plants stands at a meager

6498.91 MW during the month of February, 2013. Also, a

daily report generated by the same company in respect of 27-

Apr-2013 depicting the installed capacity across all power

generating plants as on that date is produced herewith and

marked as Document No.18. It is seen from the said report

that the installed capacity is shown at 6496 MW for the State

as a whole on 27-Apr-2013.


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49. Also, the plaintiffs submit that the office of the Chairman tothe Karnataka Power Corporation Limited appears to have

been reserved to the serving Chief Minister of the State. Sri

B.S.Yedyurappa held the position of the Chairman of this

company until 26-Aug-2011; Sri D.V.Sadananda Gowda held

it between 26-Aug-2011 and 24-Jul-2012 and Sri Jagadish

Shettar held the office of the Chairman from 24-Jul-2012.

Therefore, had only the promise of power generation invited

the serious attention of the BJP, with no less than the ChiefMinisters themselves positioned as the Chairmen to the

Karnataka Power Corporation Limited, the BJP would have

certainly made greater progress in the matter of power

generation. They did not do so because they mostly intended

to fraudulently defraud the voters when they knowingly and

dishonestly claimed in their promise sheet that they would

enhance power generation from the then 5000 MW to 10000

MW when in fact, their disregard of the voters true difficulties

is evident from the current generation merely reaching 6000

MW from the then 5000 MW.

50. The plaintiffs respectfully submit that a target of increasingthe power generation in the State by 5000 MW over a period

of 5 years is not unattainable and the practical doability andfeasibility of such an accomplishment is a factor that led

these plaintiffs to materially rely upon the representation

fraudulently made by the BJP.

Another promise cyber cafe in every village remains

largely unfilled.

51. More than 95% of the villages in the State of Karnataka didnot receive any cyber cafe over the past 5 years as promised

by the BJP and the rural voters are bound to be gravely

injured by reason of the breach thereof. Internet is today an

invaluable mode of communication and most rural voters

would consider themselves to have been economically


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deprived of the benefits of the internet due to such fraudulent

misrepresentation engaged in by the BJP. In the world of

commerce, if an individual would knowingly and fraudulently

promise a 100 when he knew that he could not even deliver 2

or 3, he would be legally held to have acted with evil intent

and motive. There is no good basis in the law to hold the BJP

to a lesser standard of culpability than is applied to the

ordinary citizens by our Courts.

The scheme of fraud played upon the unsuspecting voters by

the BJP:

52. The BJP clearly knew that its election promises would berelied upon by the voters to the legislative assembly

constituencies. A bare perusal of its election promise would

clearly indicate that the party fully knew what promises to

state in definite and precise language and what promises to

state in very general terms. Further, the party has also

exhibited a keen understanding of the distinction between

promises that were purported to be achieved within a given

timeframe and promises that were mere statement of future

efforts and were therefore, not strictly bound by any time

frame. Therefore, it is plainly evident from the election

promises made by the BJP political party that it clearly knewthe subtle and sophisticated distinctions between the several

election promises made by it. The BJP made the promises for

the sole purpose of inducing the voters to vote for the

candidates setup by that political party by means of reliance

upon the election promises made by it. The party therefore

committed an act of fraudulent misrepresentation in respect

of its several election promises by engaging in the following

acts and by leading to following causative chain of events:

a) false promises were knowingly, intentionally anddeliberately made by the BJP to the voters;


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b) the false promises were made with a full knowledge andexpectation that the voters would place reliance upon

such promises;

c) the false promises were made with further awareness ofthe intense competition that the BJP party had faced

from its rivals who would also make their own election `

promises;

d) the false promises were made with a view to inducevoters to rely upon the same as made with a honest

intention to believe that the promises would be

performed if the party was voted to power;

e) the false promises did induce the voters who lacked themeans to discover the fraudulent intent of the BJP

political party;

f) the voters who were induced to vote for the BJP politicalparty and who were unaware of its fraudulent intent did

cast their vote in favour of candidates set up by the

BJP;

g) the BJP therefore benefitted from the fraudulentmisrepresentation it made to the voters and emerged as

the single largest political party by securing 110

number of seats in the elections held to the State

Legislative Assembly;

h) the BJP then chose to remain unaccountablethroughout its five year term by recklessly disregarding

several of its election promises on the strength of which

alone it was elected to power;

i) the BJP, by remaining recklessly indifferent to its ownelection promises has established, to a definite legal

certainty, that several of its election promises were

fraudulent misrepresentations and were made with a

fraudulent intention to induce unsuspecting voters who


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lacked any means to detect the fraudulent intent of the

BJP in making its false election promises.

53. The BJP clearly knew that in order to distinguish itself fromits competitors, it should strive to present a desirable picture

of what it would definitively accomplish if it were voted to

power. In order to paint a picture which it expected to appeal

to the electorate, it must be held to have brazenly and

blatantly lied to the voters. Therefore, the BJP should be held

to have held out fraudulent misrepresentations for the

purpose of deceiving the voters about its true intent. However,

the fact that a person does not foresee the probable

consequences of his own actions does not thereby prevent the

occurrence of those consequences and the law of torts has

been developed over the centuries with the precise objective of

rendering a man answerable and accountable for the

consequences of his actions if any person has been

proximately injured or harmed thereby unless the connection

between the doer and the injured is not capable of giving rise

to a legal relationship. The connection between the plaintiffs

and the BJP political party in the circumstances of this case

was such as to give rise to a full-fledged legal relationship

between both.

The existence of a political party, in the light of pervasive

regulations to which it is already subject to, is solely to

promote public good and never for private gain or

aggrandisement.

54. The plaintiffs respectfully submit that the extent of regulationto which political parties are already subject to in our country

is best reflected in the information solicited by the Election

Commission of India in the matter of registering a given

political party. A copy of an application form that an aspiring

political party should submit to the Election Commission of

India for the purpose of securing its registration is produced

herewith and marked as Document No.19.


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55. Further, in terms of the discovery provisions of the Code ofCivil Procedure, 1908, a separate application has been made

to secure certain documents and materials in the custody or

possession of the BJP. In relation thereto, the fact that a

registered political party is already subject to pervasive

regulation would become greatly relevant in the matter of

curtailing any privilege, privacy or confidentiality that could

be claimed by the BJP in opposition to such discovery.

Elements of liability of the BJP in the facts of this case under

the law of contract for breach of promise or alternatively, in

the absence of the formation of a contract, on the common

law tort of fraudulent misrepresentation:

56. There was a promise which the promisor should reasonablyexpect to induce action or forbearance on the part of the

promisee. The BJP was not merely stating a future intention

but was pledging to conduct itself in a specified way or tobring about a specified result in the future. The BJP made

statements specifically to dispel the scepticism that usually

greets political speech and to convince the voters that it was

committing itself in a solemn fashion.

57. The promise induced such action or forbearance. It is too wellestablished that one who fraudulently makes amisrepresentation of fact, opinion, intention or law for the

purpose of inducing another to act or to refrain from action in

reliance upon it, is subject to liability to the other in deceit for

pecuniary loss caused to him by his justifiable reliance upon

such misrepresentation.

58. The BJP had said to the effect that, "I promise to increase thepower generation in Karnataka to 10000 MW from the

existing 5000 MW. As a statement of future intention, this

promise is characterized in tort law as a statement of fact. In

the context of power generation, the BJP did not merely state

to the effect that I will increase power generation in the

State. Had it stated as such, no cause of action for deceit


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would have been created, in part because the BJP did not

state a present belief as to a specific and actionable future

intention. Instead, it could be said to have merely used a

rhetorical device to convey the message, "I think I am a better

candidate." The distinction does lie in the specificity of BJPs

promise; by pledging to perform an act that only it could

perform and by stating its intention as a present fact, it

fulfilled the first and foremost element of the claim.

59. The BJP, at the time of making the promises to the voterswho were due to vote to the elections to the 13th Vidhana

Sabha knew that it would not fulfill the promise.

60. Furthermore, the representation was intended for a

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