(1)An appeal shall lie to the District Judge of the District in which the area of Board is situated as herein provided from any decision of a Returning Officer accepting or rejecting a nomination paper.(2)Any candidate aggrieved by a decision of the Returning Officer accepting or rejecting a nomination paper may present an appeal therefrom to the District Judge within a period of seven days from the date of publication of the list of validly nominated candidates:Provided that such candidate has, not later than 3 O'clock in the afternoon of the day next following the said date, given the Returning Officer a notice in writing of his intention to appeal under this section.(3)If one or more notices has or have been received in accordance with the proviso to sub-section (2), the Returning Officer shall, immediately, after the expiry of the time mentioned in that proviso-(a)publish the notices by affixing to his notice Board one copy of each of the notices together with an intimation in the prescribed form that the hearing of the appeals, if any, presented in pursuance of those notices will commence before the District Judge on the tenth day after the date of such publication; and(b)send to the District Judge a copy of each of the notices, the intimation referred to in clause (a) and the list of validly nominated candidates.(4)The Returning Officer shall, on application made by or on behalf of a candidate, supply forthwith to the applicant a copy of the decision accepting or rejecting a nomination paper together with the statement of reasons, recorded by him.(5)In every appeal under this section, the appellant shall join as respondents all the candidates (other than himself) whose nominations have been accepted by the Returning Officer.(6)The intimation affixed to the notice board of the Returning Officer under clause (a) of sub-section (3) shall be deemed to be sufficient notice, both of the presentation of an appeal under this section and of the date on which the hearing thereof shall commence before the District Judge, and it shall not be necessary to give any other notice to the appellants or the respondents and the appeal or appeals shall be deemed to have been fixed for pre-emptory hearing on the said date.(7)Every appeal under this section shall be heard de die in deem and disposed of by the District Judge as expeditiously as possible, and his decision shall be communicated forthwith to the Returning Officer.(8)Where one or more notices of intention to appeal has or have been given to the Returning Officer, but no appeal is presented within the period specified in sub-section (2) the District Judge shall immediately intimate that fact to the Returning Officer in the prescribed form.(9)In every case where one or more notices of intention to appeal has or have been given to the Returning Officer, he shall, upon receipt of the communications of the District Judge referred to in sub-sections (7) and (8) republish by affixing to his notice board the list of validly nominated candidates after revising it, if necessary, in conformity with the decisions of the District Judge.(10)The decision of the District Judge on appeal under this section, and subject only to such decision the decision of the Returning Officer accepting or rejecting the nomination of a candidate shall be final and conclusive and shall not be called in question in any court or tribunal, including the Election Tribunal.
