P K BAIJU Vs. STATE OF KERALA,

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioner claims to be a member of Kannur Central Library and that Kannur Central Library is affiliated to state library council. It is also stated that he was elected to the Taluk Library Council from Kannur Taluk in an election conducted on 01.12.2019 and thereafter he was elected as a delegate to State Library Council and that all these elections were conducted after appointment of a returning officer, who published the final voters list after calling for objections on draft voters list. It is stated that the members to the District Library Council are to be elected by the Taluk Library Council. Election to the District Library Council was scheduled on 25.01.2020 and the candidates were elected unopposed. As per Ext.P1 proceedings dated 30.01.2020, the returning officer forwarded the list containing the names of the members of executive committee to the District Library Council and the delegates to the State Library Council who were declared elected unopposed. In Ext.P2 list petitioner's name is included among the delegates elected to State Library Council.

(2.) It is further stated that the Kerala State Library Council consists of one member each from a Taluk elected by the general body of the District Library Council, 3 members of the District Panchayath, 1 member from the councilors of Municipality (if any), and 5 members nominated by Govt. The Taluk Library Council consists of 3 members elected from village/panchayath presidents in the Taluk, 1 member elected from Municipal Chairperson in the Taulk and 2 representatives of affiliated library in Taulk. According to the petitioner, all affiliated Libraries in the State are governed by the Kerala State Library Council and Section 45 of the Public Libraries (Kerala Granthasala Sanghom) Act, 1989 (Kerala) read as follows: 45: Affiliation of existing libraries On and from such date as the Government may fix, all the libraries affiliated to the Granthasala Sanghom and the Public Libraries established or maintained by a Local Library Authority in erstwhile Malabar area, under the provisions of the Madras Public Libraries Act, 1948 (Madras Act XXIV of 1948) and the libraries which are not affiliated to the Granthasala Sanghom but which receive grant direct from the Government as well as the State Libraries shall be deemed to be affiliated to the State Library Council and the provisions of this Act and the rules and bye-laws made thereunder shall apply to those libraries.

(3.) Petitioner claims that he is a member of Kannur Central Library and that Kannur Central library was established under the provisions of Madras Public Libraries Act, 1948 which is regularly receiving grant from the State Library Council and it is deemed to be affiliated to the State Library Council under Section 45 of the Public Libraries (Kerala Granthasala Sanghom) Act, 1989 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act'). Petitioner claims that Kannur Central Library is an LLA receiving grant from the State Library Council and that it has submitted form No.50 before the Control Board as provided in Rule 12 of the Public Libraries (Kerala Granthasala Sanghom) Rules (hereinafter referred to as 'the Rules'). Petitioner claims that the Kannur Central Library was allowed grant for the year 2019-20 as per Ext P3 proceedings dated 05.03.2020 of the State Library Council.