TARLOCHAN DEV SHARMA Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant was elected a Councillor of Rajpura Municipal Council in January, 1998. In the month of April, 1998, he was elected as President of the Municipality. He had held that office hardly for a period of four months when he was served with a notice dated 19-8-1998 Issued by the Principal Secretary, Department of Local Government, State of Punjab requiring him to show cause why he be not removed from the post of President and of member of the Municipal Council and also why he be not restrained from contesting elections of the Municipal Council for the next five years. The notice levelled three charges against the appellant. The first two charges are redundant inasmuch as the same have been found not substantiated and hence not acted upon. The third charge only needs to be dealt with on which alone is founded the order of removal from Presidentship which was impugned by the appellant by filing a writ petition before the High Court. Charge No. 3 is extracted from the show cause notice and reproduced hereunder:-

(2.) The appellant gave a detailed reply. In so far as the abovesaid third charge is concerned, the appellant submitted as under :

(3.) The appellant was called for a personal hearing before the Principal Secretary. Local Government. The appellant availed the opportunity of personal hearing and apart from making oral submissions, also submitted a written memo of his submissions reiterating, though by elaborating, the stand earlier taken by him. He also set out in very many details, how his Presidentship of the Municipality in the background of the political party to which he belonged, was an eyesore to the political party and the politicians in power and the bureaucracy having joined hands with the politicians by submitting to their dictates, acting together they were determined to drive him out of the office. By order dated 1-10-1999 issued by Shri N. K. Arora, Principal Secretary to Government of Punjab, Department of Local Government, the appellant was informed that although there was doubt in allegations No. 1 and 2 but allegation No. 3 was substantiated and, therefore, the appellant was being removed from the Presidentship of the Municipal Council, Rajpura. The relevant part of the order reads as under :