Gram Panchayat members with caste validity certificates obtained and submitted prior to or soon after election are not automatically disqualified under Section 10(1A) and can validly participate in no confidence motion against Sarpanch.

JUDGMENT :

PRAFULLA S. KHUBALKAR, J.

RULE. Rule made returnable forthwith and heard finally with consent of the learned counsel for the parties.

2. By this petition, the petitioner has challenged the order dated 18.06.2025, passed by the respondent no.2-Additional Collector, Nagpur and the motion of no confidence dated 16.01.2025, passed against him and the resultant order dated 30.06.2025, passed by respondent No.22- Block Development Officer, Panchayat Samiti Saoner, Dist. Nagpur, directing the appointment of an administrator for conducting the affairs of Gram Panchayat Walni, Taluka Saoner, District Nagpur.

3. The controversy in the instant petition arises in the backdrop of following facts:-

The petitioner was elected as Sarpanch of Gram Panchayat Walni, Taluka Saoner, District Nagpur in the elections held in December-2023. The tenure of Gram Panchayat was for a period of five years. On 10.01.2025,the respondent nos.6 to 20 moved a requisition/notice of no confidence against the petitioner. On the basis of this notice, the respondent no.4-Naib Tahsildar, Saoner, convened a special meeting on 16.01.2025, in which thirteen members voted in favour of the motion and one member voted against the motion. At this stage, a dispute was raised by the petitioner before the Authorities and the matter was contested with two rounds of litigation upto this Court and the dispute was decided finally by order dated 18.06.2025 passed by the respondent no.2. Thereafter, a special meeting of Gram Sabha was held on 27.06.2025, at the behest of the Block Development Officer and in the said meeting of Gram Sabha, the Motion of no confidence was ratified by the Gram Sabha. The petitioner was accordingly removed from the post of Sarpanch of Gram Panchayat, Walni.

4. Feeling aggrieved by the motion of no confidence, the petitioner filed proceedings before respondent no.1-Collector, Nagpur, bearing Dispute No.41/MVP 35(3B)/2024-2025, under Section 35(3B) of the Maharashtra Village Panchayats Act, 1959 (for short, ‘the Act’). By order dated 18.06.2025, the dispute filed by the petitioner came to be dismissed and the motion of no confidence against the petitioner came to be confirmed. This order is subjected to challenge by way of instant petition, which was filed on 19.06.2025.

5. As a consequence of the confirmation of the motion of no confidence against the petitioner, the Block Development Officer issued an order dated 30.06.2025 and directed appointment of an administrator to conduct the affairs of Gram Panchayat. Consequently, by way of amendment to the petition, the petitioner also raised a challenge to the order dated 30.06.2025 passed by the Block Development Officer.

6. Shri S.S.Sanyal, learned counsel for the petitioner advanced several submissions in support of the petition, which are briefly stated below:-

i. The motion of no confidence moved against the petitioner was defective since six members out of fourteen members, who had participated as members of the Gram Panchayat, were disqualified for their failure to submit the caste validity certificates within the prescribed time limit. As such, their participation in the meeting was invalid and the resultant motion