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IN THE HIGH COURT OF BOMBAY
A.P. Shah B.H. Marlapalle, JJ.
Shri Ashok Ganapat Jadhav another.... Petitioners.
Versus
State Election Commission others.... Respondents.
Writ Petition No. 2597 of 2000, decided on 29-6-2000.
Advocates appeared :
S.A. Bobde, Sr.C. with Ketkar, for the petitioners.
R.V. More, for the respondent No. 2.
C.R. Sonawane, A.G.P., for State.
Section 4-Division of Gram Panchayat into two different Gram Panchayats-Opportunity of hearing to villagers is mandatory.-After the introduction of Part IX in the Constitution and the consequent amendments to the provisions of Section 4 of the Bombay Village Panchayats Act an opportunity of hearing prior to the delimitation order is passed, is mandatory and the order to be passed by the State Government for delimiting the areas of a Village Panchayat or separating a Group Grampanchayat into residents in keeping with the rule of audi alteram partem. What is explicit in the Constitutional mandate and the provisions of Section 4 of the Act is the mandatory requirement of the villagers being heard before such an order of delimiting is passed by the Government. This opportunity of hearing may be by way of displaying notice on the village Chawdi/Panchayat or any place prominent in the respective wards and/ or by giving a public notice by beat of drums and it may not be necessary to give individual notice of hearing to every villager. So long as the mode of giving notice to all the villagers by way of publication, the announcement by beat of drums, etc., is followed and they are called upon to put up their say on the proposal of delimitation, the principles of natural justice would be met. Where the villagers were not given an opportunity of hearing by any of the modes as stated above and the rule of audi alteram partem was manifestly violated, the impugned notification delimiting one Group Grampanchayat into two separate Grampanchayats was in violation of the Constitutional mandate as well as the scheme of Section 4 of the Act. Under the circumstances, the challenge to the said notification as raised upheld. The impugned decision of formation of two separate village panchayats quashed.
[Ashok Ganpat Jadhav and another v. State Election Commission, Mumbai, 2000 (4) Mh LJ 150 (Bom) : 2000 (4) All MR 565].
281 -Section 10 and Constitution of India as amended by Seventy Third Amendment Act, 1992,Art. 243-C(2)Under Gram Panchayat as constituted under the Act as amended to bring it in conformity with Article 243-C(2) of the Constitution there is no associate or co-opted member of the Gram Panchayat - Consequently there is no question of serving notice of no-confidence to such member.
2. On 22nd March, 2000 the Election programme for the Village Panchayat elections was declared by the State Election Commission as required under section 11 of the Bombay Village Panchayat Act, 1958 (The V.P. Act for short). The earlier tenure of the Kharoli Group Grampanchayat was to expire on 4th September, 2000. However, on 2nd May, 2000 the Tahsildar addressed a letter to the Gramsevak of Kharoli informing him to hold elections for the Kharoli Group Grampanchayat, whereas by the impugned communication he informed that the earlier decision to hold elections for the Group Grampanchayat will have to be stayed in view of the decision taken by the Rural and Irrigation Department of the Government of Maharashtra on 8th May, 2000 and fresh elections will be announced for two different Village Panchayats separately.
3. It has been contended by the petitioners that the decision of the Government to bifurcate the Group Grampanchayat and forming separate Grampanchayats for Kharoli and Kalij is bad in law inasmuch as there was no prior consultation with the Zilla Parishad, Raigad, Village Panchayat, Kharoli and no hearing was given to the villagers before the said decision was taken by the State Government. It is further contended that the procedure adopted while bifurcating the Group Grampanchayat into two separate Grampanchayats is contrary to the law laid down by the Apex Court in the case of (State of U.P. and others etc. v. Pradhan Sangh Kshettra Samiti and others etc.)1, A.I.R. 1995 S.C. 1512.
4. Chapter II of the Act provides for Gram Sabhas, Establishment and Constitution of Panchayats. The provisions of section 4 of the Act originally read, as under :---
"4. (1) After making such enquiry as may be prescribed, the State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, declare any local area, comprising a revenue village or a group of revenue villages or hamlets forming part of a revenue village, or other such administrative unit or part thereof, to be a village to be known by the name of ... ... village.
Provided that, where a group of revenue villages or hamlets or other such administrative unit or part thereof is declared to be a village, the village shall be known by the name of the revenue village, hamlet or as the case may be, administrative unit or part thereof, having the largest population.
(2) After consultation with the (Standing Committee) and the Panchayat concerned (if it has already been established), the State Government may, by like notification, at any time
(a) include within or exclude from, any village, any local area or otherwise alter the limits of any village, or
(b) declare that any local area shall cease to be a village
and thereupon the local area shall be so included or excluded, or the limits of the village so altered, or, as the case may be, the local area shall cease to be a village."
5. By the 73rd Constitutional Amendment, Part IX consisting of Articles 243 to 243-O, has been introduced in the Constitution. Article 243 (g), defines "Village" to mean a village specified by the Governor by public notification to be a village for the purposes of this part and includes a group of villages so specified. Article 243(b) defines "Gram Sabha" to mean a body consisting of persons registered in the electoral rolls relating to a village comprised within the area of Panchayat at the village level, whereas Article 243(d) defines "Panchayat" to mean an institution (by whatever name called) of self-government constituted under Article 243B, for the rural areas. Article 243A states that
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