Achintya Malla Bujor Barua, J.

1. Heard Mr. HRA Choudhury, learned Senior counsel for the petitioner. Also heard Mr. G. Uddin, learned counsel for respondent Nos. 8 to 15, as well as Mr. S.P. Choudhury, learned counsel for respondent Nos. 2, 3, 4 and 6. None appears for the respondent Nos. 5 and 7. The petitioner was elected as the President of the Tantoo Dhanipur Gaon Panchayat under Lala Anchalik Panchayat, Hailakandi district during the Panchayat election that was held in the year 2013. By the same election, the present respondent Nos. 8 to 15 were also elected as members along with 3 (three) other members.

2. The petitioner states that upon assuming the Office of the President of the Gaon Panchayat, he had been discharging his duties with utmost sincerity and to the satisfaction of all concerned and there were no allegation against him for the last 3 1/2 years. It is stated that due to certain extraneous consideration, some of the members were of the view to oust the petitioner by adopting a no confidence motion against him.

3. It is case of the respondent Nos. 8 to 15 that on 09.05.2016, they had made a requisition for convening the no confidence meeting against the petitioner and that the said requisition was addressed to the Secretary of the Tantoo Dhanipur Gaon Panchayat.

4. Per contra, it is the case of the petitioner that although the said requisition dated 09.05.2016 may have been made by respondent Nos. 8 to 15, but the Secretary of the Gaon Panchayat had not delivered the said requisition to the petitioner for taking appropriate action pursuant thereto. Although the Secretary of the Gaon Panchayat had informed the petitioner about such requisition but when the petitioner requested the Secretary to provide him with a copy of the said requisition, the same was not provided.

5. The petitioner also informed the Secretary that under Section 15(2) of the Assam Panchayat Act, 1994, unless the requisition for such meeting is delivered to the President, he cannot act on the same only on the basis of the information given by the Secretary.

6. Be that as it may, on 15.06.2016, a peon of the Gaon Panchayat came to the residence of the petitioner and handed over the copy of a note dated 10.06.2016 of the Deputy Commissioner, Hailakandi, wherein it was provided that the special meeting for the no confidence against the petitioner would be held on 17.06.2016 at 10. AM.

7. At that stage also the petitioner had asked the authorities for a copy of the requisition dated 09.05.2016 and, accordingly, submitted an application before the Deputy Commissioner, Hailakandi dated 16.06.2016 by which a request was made that the meeting should not be held on 16.06.2016.

8. Be that as it may, by the resolution dated 17.06.2016, out of the 10 members of the Panchayat, 8 members had voted in favour of the no confidence, which was conducted by the method of secret ballot.

9. In this writ petition, the said resolution dated 17.06.2016 has been assailed on the ground that the requisition dated 09.05.2016 was not delivered to the petitioner as required under Section 15(2) of the Assam Panchayat Act, 1994 (for short, Act of 1994).

10. Section 15(2) of the Act of 1994, inter alia, provides that that the requisition for such a special meeting under Sub-Section(1) of Section 15 shall be signed by one third of the total number of members of the Gaon Panchayat and shall be delivered to the President or Vice President as the case may be, with information to the Deputy Commissioner of the District'.

Section 15(2) of the Assam Panchayat Act, 1994 is as under:

'The requisition for such a special meeting under Sub-Section(1) shall be signed by not less than one third of the total number of members of the Gaon Panchayat and shall be delivered to the President or Vice President as the case may be, of the concerned [Gaon Panchayat] with information to the Deputy Commissioner of the District'.

11. The expression 'shall be delivered to the President' appearing in Sub-S