NARENDRA NATH CHAKRAVORTY Vs. CORPORATION OF CALCUTTA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner in this case is a rate-payer and a registered voter of the Corporation of Calcutta in its constituency No. 50. The petitioner No. 2 is a councilor of the Corporation. The respondent No. 4, as the Secretary to the Corporation, issued and Circulated among the members of the Corporation of Calcutta, agenda No. 12 in respect of a meeting, being the 9th ordinary meeting, to be held on the 19th June, 1959. The said agenda included a notice of a proposed resolution to be moved by a councilor, Sri Biman Behari Mitra, being item No. 15. A copy of the proposed resolution has been annexed to the petition and marked with the letter "a". A translation of the said resolution is set out below:-

(2.) THE said motion was not reached at the 9th ordinary meeting of the Corporation held on the 19th June, 1959 and was adjourned till the 26th June, 1959. The Secretary to the Corporation thereafter issued and circulated to the members an additional item of business, being item No. 29, to be taken up on the adjourned day, being a proposed resolution to be moved by Dr. K. P. Ghose and Sri B. L. Ghose, a copy whereof is included in annexure "a" to the petition. A translation of it is set out below:-

(3.) THESE two motions were not reached at the adjourned meeting held on the 26th June, 1959 and the consideration thereof was adjourned till the adjourned meeting of the 29th June, 1959. On the 29th June, 1959 at the adjourned meeting of the Corporation Sri Biman Behari Mitra moved the motion referred to above which was seconded by Sri Panna Lal Das and Sri Satyananda Bhattacharjee. An amendment was moved by Sri Naren Sen, which was seconded by Sri Nil Ratan Sinha, and the same was accepted by Sri Biman Behari Mitra. Another amendment was moved by Sri Subrata sen Sarma which was seconded by Sri Sachin Sen. These amendments have been set out in Schedule "a" to the affidavit- in -opposition field by the respondent No. 4. The second motion mentioned above was moved by Dr. K. P. Ghose and was seconded by Sri B. L. Ghose. On the 29th June, 1959 there was a long discussion, which was inconclusive and the meeting was adjourned to the 4th July, 1959. I shall have to deal with certain aspects of the discussion held on that day particularly the decision of the Mayor on the point as to whether the subject matter of the motions were appropriate under the provisions of the Calcutta Municipal Act, 1951 (hereinafter referred to as the "act" ). The relevant extracts from the proceedings of that day have been included in the Schedule "a" annexed to the affidavit of the respondent No. 4. It will be sufficient here to say that at that meeting an objection was taken to the effect that it was an ordinary meeting, and under Rule 17 (d) of the 'rules of Business' framed by the Corporation, under powers conferred by the Act, none of the resolutions mentioned above could be considered at such a meeting. That Rule is in the following terms:-