Court No. - 32
Case :- WRIT - C No. - 38805 of 2018 Petitioner :- Shiva Kant Tripathi Respondent :- State Of U.P. And 4 Others Counsel for Petitioner :- Udayan Nandan,Shri Shashi Nandan (Sr. Advocate) Counsel for Respondent :- C.S.C.
Hon'ble Shashi Kant Gupta,J. Hon'ble Mrs. Manju Rani Chauhan,J.
Heard learned counsel for the petitioner, Shri Shashi Nandan, learned Senior Advocate assisted by Sri Udayan Nandan, learned counsel for the petitioner, learned Standing Counsel and perused the record.
This writ petition, inter alia, has been filed for the following reliefs;
"(i) Issue a suitable order or direction in the nature of certiorari quashing the notice dated 16.11.2018 issued by the Collector, Chitrakoot (contained as Annexure No. 8 to the writ petition).
(ii) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of mandamus directing the respondents not to hold any meeting for consideration of no confidence motion against the petitioner on 5.12.2018 and further direct the respondents not to interfere in the working of the petitioner as Pramukh, Kshettra Panchayat, Mau, Chitrakoot."
The petitioner has filed the present writ petition for quashing the impugned notice dated 16.11.2018 whereby the District Magistrate has convened a meeting of Kshettra Panchayat for consideration of no confidence motion.
In pursuance of a written notice of intention dated 22.10.2018 moved by the members of the Kshettra Panchayat before the District Magistrate concerned for expressing want of confidence together with a copy of the proposed motion, the District Magistrate has convened the meeting for consideration of no confidence motion on 5.12.2018.
Learned counsel for the petitioner, inter alia, has submitted that the members of the Kshettra Panchayat are trying to deliberately oust the petitioner illegally by bringing successive motions of no confidence against the petitioner to settle political score and, therefore, the act of the members amounts to abuse of the process of law in order to circumvent the spirit of law and the procedure laid down by The U.P. Kshettra Panchayats And Zila Panchayats Act 1961(in short "Act 1961"). He further submitted that the motion passed on 22.10.2018 clearly shows that vague allegations of misconduct have been levelled against the petitioner without any concrete basis and the same cannot be a ground for removal of the Pramukh under Section 15 of the Act 1961. It was further submitted that the motion was allegedly passed on 22.10.2018, was submitted by 67 members of Kshettra Panchayat. However, various members have subsequently denied the fact that they were present in the meeting dated 22.10.2018 or that they have appended their signatures on the aforesaid motion. Lastly, Shri Shashi Nandan, Senior Advocate appearing on behalf of the petitioner has submitted that while convening the meeting for consideration of no confidence motion on 5.12.2018, the District Magistrate should have recorded the preliminary order about his satisfaction but such satisfaction has not been recorded.
Heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the record.
From a bare perusal of the writ petition it is evident that a written notice was delivered as provided under Section 15 (2) of the Act 1961 on 22.10.2018 by 67 elected members appending their signatures/thumb impressions. In pursuance of the same, by notice dated 16.11.2018 a meeting was convened for consideration of no confidence motion on 5.12.2018. There is nothing on record to show that any complaint whatsoever was ever made either by the petitioner or by any other elected members who had signed the written notice before the Collector.
The main contention of Shri Shashi Nandan, Senior Advocate appearing on behalf of the petitioner is that the while issuing the impugned notice for convening a meeting of no confidence, the District Magistrate has not recorded the preliminary order about his satisfaction.
We have gone through the provisions contained under Section 15 of the Act 1961. We do not see that the District Magistrate was to record preliminary order about his satisfaction before convening a meeting. Perusal of the record shows that more than half of the members of Kshettra Panchayat have signed the notice delivered under Section 15 of the Act 1961.
We do not see any illegality or infirmity in the notice dated 16.11.2018 whereby the meeting for consideration of no confidence motion on 5.12.2018 has been fixed. In the result, the writ petition stands dismissed.
Order Date :- 28.11.2018 vinay