Nagpur Mayor restrained from nominating co-opted members

Nagpur, Mar 2 (UNI) The Nagpur Bench of the Bombay High Court has restrained the Mayor from nominating five co-opted members to the general body of Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) and has fixed March seven as the date for the final hearing.

The order came from a division bench consisting of Justice Ambadas Joshi and Justice R C Chavan on a writ petition filed by social worker Bhalchandra Joshi, challenging the powers granted to the Mayor to make the nominations.

The bench said that prima facie, the rules framed on February 21 last by the Government of Maharashtra authorising the Mayor to nominate the members appeared in contravention to the provisions of the City of Nagpur Corporation (CNC) Act, which governs the functioning of the civic body here.

The CNC Act provided for the election of the five co-opted members through secret ballot by the directly elected members of the general body, while the rules authorised the Mayor to name them, the bench observed. As such, the rules were inconsistent with the provisions of the Act, it said. The power (to select the co-opted members) could not be transferred without amending the CNC Act, the bench also said, and fixed March seven as the date for the final hearing.

In his petition, Mr Joshi said the authority granted to the Mayor was arbitrary and in violation of the provisions of the CNC Act.

The Act was amended in December 1996 to provide for election of the co-opted members by the directly elected members, Mr Joshi said.

However, the Government of Maharashtra issued a notification on February 21, 2007, authorising the Mayor to nominate the co-opted members, without amending the relevant section in the Act, he pointed out. This was an infringement of the NMC's authority to frame the rules for the election, and an 'undeclared' amendment in the law by the State government, he has contended.

Incidentally, the election to the post of Mayor and Deputy Mayor of NMC is slated for March five.

UNI