DHEERAJ MESHRAM Vs. STATE OF CHHATTISGARH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner, president of Municipal Council, Dongargarh, has assailed the legality and validity of the order Annexure P-1 whereby the department of Urban Administration and Development, Government of Chhattisgarh, in exercise of powers u/s 324 of the C.G. Municipalities Act 1961 has kept in abeyance financial powers of the petitioner as conferred on the President of Municipality under Rule 90(2) of the C.G. Municipalities Account Rules 1971.

(2.) FACTS of the case, briefly stated, are that while discharging functions of the President of the said Municipality, a complaint was made before the Collector, Rajnandgaon vide Annexure R-1 alleging financial favouritism/benefit extended by the petitioner to one electrical contractor. The Collector made enquiries and submitted report to the State Government on 02.06.2011 and thereafter the impugned order was passed on 24.08.2011 (Annexure P- 1). In the report of the Collector, findings were recorded that the petitioner was guilty of signing the cheque without signing of the note-sheet and the cheque by the concerned Chief Municipal Officer.

(3.) IN the matter of Smt. Prabharani Vishwakarma v. State of Madhya Pradesh & others AIR 1999 MP 223, the Division Bench of the M.P. High Court has drawn distinction between the President and Municipal Council. Relevant portion of Paragraph 11 of the said judgment is quoted hereinbelow: