TMI Blog1965 (2) TMI 135X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... held on January 22, 1961. The result of the elections was notified in the Punjab Government Gazette on February 27, 1961. The new members took oath on March 16, 1961 and began functioning from that date. On August 4, 1961, notifications dated July 26, 1961 were issued in which it was stated that the Governor of Punjab for reasons of public interest was pleased to direct that the seats of the three appellants shall be vacated from the date of the publication of the notifications in the State Gazette and to direct further that under Sub-Section (3) of Section 16 of the Act, the three appellants shall be disqualified for election for a period of one year from the date specified. No notice was issued to the appellants to show cause why their seats be not vacated and no hearing was given to them before the action in question was taken by the Governor of Punjab. The appellants case was that after the notifications vacating their seats and disqualifying them had been issued, they came to know that these notifications had been issued on the basis of a resolution passed by the out-going municipal committee on March 13, 1961 to the effect that the appellants had taken part in a demonstratio ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nother provision which gives power to the State Government to remove any member of a municipal committee. This power is exercised for reasons given in cl. (a) to cl. (g) of section 16(1). The proviso to section 16(1) lays down that before the State Government notifies the removal of a member under this section, the reasons for his proposed removal shall be communicated to the member concerned, and he shall be given an opportunity of tendering an explanation in writing. The proviso therefore requires a hearing before the State Government takes action under section 16(1). Sub-section (2) of section 16 provides for disqualification and says inter alia that any person removed under section 16(1) shall be disqualified for election for a period not exceeding five years. There is a slight difference here inasmuch as under this provision there must be disqualification for some period not exceeding five years, though if a member's seat is vacated under section 14(e) the disqualification is entirely in the discretion of the State Government and is not imperative. That however has no effect on the question whether the relevant part of section 14(e) is unconstitutional as it is hit by Ar ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... for exactly the same reason the State Government chooses to take action under section 14(e) it need not give any opportunity to the member to show cause why he should not be removed. Further it is submitted that though section 14(e) may be said to be wider inasmuch as cls. (a) to (g) may in a conceivable case not completely cover all that may be included in the term public interests , the removal for reasons given in cls. (a) to (g) in section 16(1) is in public interest and therefore what is contained in section 16(1) is certainly all covered by section 14(e). In consequence there are two provisions in the Act for removing a member, one contained in section 16 where the State Government cannot remove the member without giving him a hearing in the manner provided in the proviso, and the other in section 14(e) where no hearing is to be given and the member is not even called upon to show cause. Finally it is urged that it depends entirely on the State Government to use its powers either under section 14(e) or under section 16(1), where the two overlap and therefore there is clear discrimination, as the provision in section 14(e) is more drastic and does not even provide for hearin ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... g notice to the person concerned under the proviso to section 16(1) and without giving him any opportunity of hearing as provided therein. The proviso to section 24(3) further provides that the State Government may refuse to notify the name of any person elected if in its opinion he is unfit to be a member of a municipal committee on ground of public interest. It is urged that there is no provision in this connection for notice and hearing of the person elected. That seems to be so, but again the question may arise in a proper case whether this provision would be constitutional. We see no connection between the proviso to section 24(3) and the provision contained in section 14(e). The proviso to section 24(3) is complete in itself and deals with a situation where the State Government refuses to notify the election of a person who has been elected. Section 14(e) on the other hand provides for vacation of the seat of a member after he has taken the oath of office. Therefore the constitutionality or otherwise of section 14(e) will depend upon its contrast with section 16(1) which also provides for removal of a member. As we have already indicated on comparing the two provisions both o ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... State Government to vacate a seat on the ground of public interest to be unconstitutional, set aside the notifications vacating the seats of the appellants. The direction as to disqualification therefore also fails. The appellants will get their costs from the State throughout. One set of hearing fee. No costs in the writ petition. Mudholkar, J. 11. I have read the judgment prepared by my bother Wanchoo and while I agree with him that the appeals must be allowed I would prefer to give my own reasons for that conclusion. 12. The appellants in these three appeals were elected to the Municipal Committee, Batala in the elections held on January 22, 1961. On August 4, 1961, that is, after these persons started functioning as members of the Municipal Committee the Government of Punjab issued a notification under section 14, cl. (e) of the Punjab Municipalities Act, 1911 in which it which it was stated that the Governor of Punjab for reasons of public interest was pleased to direct that the seats of these appellants shall be vacated from the date of publication of the notification and further stated that they would be disqualified for election for a period of one year from the da ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... which confers upon the State Government the power to remove any member of a Committee and sets out a number of grounds upon which this could be done, would be in the public interest. Section 14, however, apart from the fact that the power it confers upon the State Government is not limited to matters set out under section 16, confers upon the Government the power to determine not merely what is in the public interest but also what for any reason which it may deem to affect the public interest. This would suggest that the power so conferred would extend to matters which may not be in the public interest. For, that would be the effect of introducing the fiction created by the words for any reason which it may deem . There is no guidance in the Act for determining what matters, though not in public interest, may yet be capable of being deemed to be in the public interest by the State Government. In the circumstances it must be held that the power which conferred upon the State Government being unguided is unconstitutional. For this reason I hold that section 14 in so far as it confers power on the State Government to require a seat of a member of a committee to be vacated for any r ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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