BIMLA ARORA Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Whether in the absence of rules for holding elections of Councillors under the Punjab Municipal Corporation Act, 1976 (hereinafter called "the Act"), resort could be had to the Punjab Municipal Election Rules, 1952 (for short, "the 1952 Rules"), is the primary question of law involved in this writ petition which was admitted to be heard by a Division Bench. The reliefs claimed are that the order dated 30/04/1991 passed by the Deputy Commissioner, Ludhiana, whereby the request of the petitioner for recount of the ballots was declined, be quashed and that fresh elections he held.

(2.) The State Government decided to hold elections to Municipal Corporations in the State of 28/04/1991. The Director, Local Bodies, prepared the election programme and sent the same on 6-3-1991 to the Deputy Commissioner, Ludhiana along with instructions for guidance to the officers concerned in connection with the holding of elections and copies of the 1952 Rules. The Director, Local Bodies, Punjab, by a notification dated 11/03/1991 while exercising his powers under Sub-Sec. (3) of S. 15 of the Act, called upon all wards of Municipal Corporations of Amritsar and Ludhiana (we are not concerned with the Municipal Corporation of Amritsar in this case) to elect Councillors for the Municipal Corporations of the respective cities. The Director also wrote a D.O. letter of the same date to the Deputy Commissioner, Ludhiana wherein it was stated that

(3.) Shri M. S. Sethi, learned counsel for the petitioner, while challenging the impugned order of the Deputy Commissioner, has advanced to contentions -