BASAYA NURNDAYA DHANDVATI Vs. MURGAYA SOMAYA JANGIN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Two points have been urged in support of this appeal. The first point is that the meeting of the Municipality convened by the Chief Officer for November 12, 1923, for the election of the President, Vice-President, and other office-bearers was illegal, as already a meeting convened by that Officer, on October 31, 1923, for a similar purpose was adjourned sine die. The second point urged is that, after the election of the President, the Chairman, who was elected to preside at the meeting of November 12 in the beginning, ought to have vacated the chair, and the proceedings of the meeting should have been continued under the presidentship of the newly elected President. It is urged that, as this was not done, and as the proceedings were continued under the Chairmanship of the Chairman elected at the beginning of the meeting, who also happened to be elected as Vice-President at that meeting, the proceedings of that meeting are vitiated.

(2.) As regards the first point, there is no provision in the Bombay District Municipal Act 3 of 1901, as it stood at the material date, to show that the meeting thus convened by the Chief Officer was ultra vires. In fact, there was no provision in the Act at the date of the meeting as to who should convene the first meeting after the new Municipality was constituted. As the first meeting of October 31 was adjourned sine die, a further meeting was necessary to avoid a deadlock. A second meeting was convened and there is nothing in the Act, as it then stood, to show that the meeting convened for November 12 was illegal in any sense.

(3.) We are not concerned with the question of the propriety of the meeting having been convened under those circumstances by the Chief Officer. It may be mentioned that most of the members of the Municipality were present at the meeting, and no objection was taken as to the validity of the meeting thus convened.