CHAUDHARI RAMJIBHAI ABHABHAI Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) ADMIT. Learned AGP Ms. Jirga Jhaveri waives service of notice of admission on behalf of respondent No.1; learned Advocate Mr. H.S. Mushaw waives service of notice of admission on behalf of respondent No.2 and learned Advocate Mr. V.C. Vaghela and learned Advocate Mr. P.R. Nanavati waive service of notice of admission on behalf of the respective respondents.

(2.) BY way of the present appeals under Clause-15 of the Letters Patent, the original respondents No.5 and 6 have challenged the judgment and order dated 30th September, 2010, passed in Special Civil Applications No.6583 of 2009 and 6541 of 2009, by which the learned Single Judge has quashed and set aside the Order dated 1.6.2009 passed by the respondent No.1 in exercise of the powers conferred upon it under Section-259 of the Gujarat Panchayats Act, 1993 ("the Act" for short) to resolve the dispute between the villagers and the beneficiaries of Sipu Dam project at Mukteshwar.

(3.) THE first contention raised by the appellants is with regard to the breach of procedure prescribed under the Act as well as the Rules committed by the panchayat while passing the Resolution No.31 on 1.2.2008. Section-97 of the Act provides that no resolution of a panchayat shall be modified, amended, varied or cancelled by a panchayat within a period of three months from the date of the passing thereof, except by a resolution supported by two-thirds of the whole number of members of such panchayat. Chapter-II of the Rules deals with the meeting of panchayat. Rules 3, 4 and 5 deal with time, place and agenda of meetings, Notice of Ordinary Meeting, Notice of special meeting, etc. Rule 6 provides that a notice stating the date, time and place of every meeting of the panchayat and of the business to be transacted, thereat, shall be displayed on the notice board at the office of the panchayat. Rule-7 deals with mode of delivery of notice. Rule-17 provides that except with the permission of the presiding officer, no business, which is not entered in the agenda, shall be transacted at any meeting and the business to be transacted at any meeting shall be taken up in the core in which it is entered in the agenda. However, it provides that in granting permission for priority for transacting any business, the presiding officer shall be guided by the majority of votes for or against the motion moved thereof.