- (1.) THE legal question raised in this case and referred to the Full Bench is whether the proceedings under Sections 21 and 23 of the Punjab Gram Panchayat Act, 1952 (Punjab Act No. IV of 1953), hereinafter referred to as the Act, are of an administrative or of an executive nature, so that a petition under Section 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure or under Article 227 of the Constitution of India would not He to this Court.
(2.) IT has been conceded before us that Section 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure is not applicable to such proceedings and accordingly it remains only necessary to determine the applicability to them of Article 227 of the Constitution of India.
(3.) SECTION 21 of the Act confers on a Gram Panchayat as defined in the Act the power to require removal of an encroachment and nuisance and is in the following terms: "21. (1) A Gram Panchayat on receiving a report or other information and on taking such evidence, if any, as it thinks fit, may make a conditional order requiring within a time to he fixed in the order (a) the owner or the occupier of any building or land- (i) to remove any encroachment on a public street, place or drain; (ii) to close, remove, alter, repair, cleanse, disinfect or put in good order any latrine, urinal, water-closet, drain, cess-pool or other receptacle for filth, sullage- water, rubbish or refuse or to remove or alter any door or trap or construct any drain for any such latrine, urinal or water-closet which opens on to a street drain, or to shut off Such latrine, urinal or water-closet by a 'sufficient roof and wall or fence from the view of persons passing by or dwelling in the neighbourhood; (iii) to cleanse, repair, cover, fill-up, drain off, deepen or to remove water from a private well, tank, reservoir, pool, pit, ditch, depression or excavation therein which may appear to the Gram Panchayat to be injurious to health or offensive to the neighbourhood; (iv) to remove any dirt, dung, night-soil, manure or any noxious or offensive matter therefrom and to cleanse the land or building; (b) the owner of any wall or building, which is deemed by the Gram Panchayat to be in any way dangerous, to remove or repair such wall or building; (c) the owner or occupier of any building or property to keep his building or property in a sanitary state; (d) the owner of any dog or other animal suffering or reasonably suspected to be suffering from rabies or which is dangerous, to destroy or confine or cause to be confined such dog or animal; (e) the owner or occupier of any agricultural land to destroy Pohli or any other such harmful weed from such land; (f) the owner or occupier concerned to reclaim any unhealthy place; (g) the owner or occupier of any building or land to maintain in proper repair the level and surface of any road or street passing in front of the building or through his land; (h) the owner or person-in-charge of a private 'khal' to keep it in a state of reasonable repair. Or if he objects so to do to appear before it, at a time and place to be fixed by the order, and to move to have the order set aside or modified in the manner hereinafter provided. If he does not perform such act or appear and show cause, the order shall be made absolute. If he appeal's and shows cause against the order, the Gram Panchayat shall take evidence and if it is satisfied that the order is not reasonable and proper no further proceedings shall be taken in the case. If it is not so satisfied the order shall be made absolute. (2) If such act is not performed within the time fixed, the Gram Panchayat may cause it to be performed and may recover the costs of performing it from such persons. ";