[Act No. 06 of 2022] [21st January,
2022] ? The following Act of the Tamil Nadu
Legistative Assembly received the assent of the Governor on the 21st January
2022 and is hereby published for general information. An Act to provide for the Establishment of a
Municipal Corporation for the City of Kumbakonam. BE it enacted by the Legislative Assembly of
the State of Tamil Nadu in the Seventy-second Year of the Republic of India as
follows. (1) This Act may be
called the Kumbakonam City Municipal Corporation Act, 2022. (2) It extends to the
city of Kumbakonam. (3) It shall be deemed to
have come into force on the 20th day of December 2021. ? (1) In this Act, unless
the context otherwise requires,?? (a) ?city of Kumbakonam?
or ?city? means the local area comprised in the Kumbakonam municipality and
includes any local area which, after the date of the commencement of this Act,
is included in the city but does not include any local area which, after such date
of the commencement of this Act, is excluded from the city; (b) ?corporation? means
the municipal corporation of Kumbakonam established under section 3; (c) ?council? means the
council of municipal corporation of Kumbakonam; (d) ?Government? means
the State Government; (e) ?municipal council?
means the municipal council of Kumbakonam municipality; (f) ?municipality? means
the Kumbakonam municipality; (g) ?Scheduled Castes?
and ?Scheduled Tribes? shall have the meanings, respectively, assigned to them
in clauses (24) and (25) of Article 366 of the Constitution. (2) All words and
expressions used in this Act and not defined but defined in the Coimbatore City
Municipal Corporation Act, 1981 (hereinafter referred to as the ?1981 Act?),
shall have the meanings, respectively, assigned to them in the 1981 Act. (1) With effect on and
from the date of the commencement of this Act, the local area included in the
Kumbakonam municipality shall constitute the city of Kumbakonam for the
purposes of this Act and from such date of the commencement of this Act, a
municipal corporation shall be deemed to have been established for the said
city by the name of Kumbakonam City Municipal Corporation: Provided that the Government may, from time
to time, after consultation with the corporation, by notification, alter the
limits of the city constituted under this sub-section so as to include therein
or to exclude therefrom the areas specified in the notification: Provided further that the power to issue a
notification under this sub-section shall be subject to previous publication. (2) The corporation
shall, by the said name, be a body corporate, having perpetual succession and a
common seal with power to acquire, hold and dispose of property and to enter
into contracts and may by its corporate name, sue and be sued. (3) The Kumbakonam
municipality, functioning immediately before the date of the commencement of
this Act, shall be deemed to have been abolished from such date of the
commencement of this Act. The municipal authorities charged with
carrying out the. provisions of this Act shall be, (a) a Mayor; (b) a council; (c) a standing committee; (d) a wards committee;
and (e) a commissioner. (1) Save as otherwise
provided in sub-section (2), the council shall consist of such number of
councillors elected in the manner laid down in this Act as may be fixed by the
Government, by notification, from time to time, so, however, that the total
number of councillors of the council shall not exceed seventy-two at any time. (2) The following persons
shall also be represented in the council, namely. (a) the members of the
House of the People representing constituencies which comprise wholly or partly
the area of the corporation and the members of the Council of States registered
as electors within the area of the corporation; (b) all the members of
the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly representing constituencies which comprise
wholly or partly the area of the corporation. (3) The persons referred
to in sub-section (2) shall be entitled to take part in the proceedings but
shall not have the right to vote in the meetings of the council. (4) Seats shall be
reserved for the persons belonging to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled
Tribes in the council and the number of seats so reserved shall bear, as nearly
as may be, the same proportion to the total number of seats to be filled by
direct election in the council as the population of the Scheduled Castes in the
city or of the Scheduled Tribes in the city bears to the total population of
the city. (5) Seats shall be
reserved for women belonging to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes,
from among the seats reserved for the persons belonging to the Scheduled Castes
and the Scheduled Tribes, which shall not be less than fifty per cent of the
total number of seats reserved for the persons belonging to the Scheduled
Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. ? (6) Seats shall be
reserved for women in the council and the number of seats reserved for women
shall not be less than fifty per cent including the number of seats reserved
for women belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes of the total
number of seats in the council. (7) The reservation of
seats under sub-sections (4) and (5) shall cease to have effect on the expiry
of the period specified in Article 334 of the Constitution. (1) The corporation,
unless sooner dissolved, shall continue for five years from the date appointed
for its first meeting after each ordinary election and no longer and the said
period of five years shall operate as a dissolution of the corporation. (2) An election to
constitute the corporation shall be completed, ? (a) before the expiry of
its duration specified in sub-section (1); or (b) before the expiration
of a period of six months from the date of its dissolution: Provided that where the remainder of the
period for which the dissolved corporation would have continued, is less than
six months, it shall not be necessary to hold any election, under this
sub-section for constituting the corporation for such period. (1) Subject to the
provisions of sub-sections (2) and (3), the Tamil Nadu District Municipalities
Act, 1920 (hereinafter referred to as the ?District Municipalities Act?) shall,
with effect on and from the date of the commencement of this Act, cease to
apply to the local area comprised within the city of Kumbakonam. (2) Such cessor shall not
affect, (a) the previous
operation of the District Municipalities Act in respect of the local area
comprised within the city of Kumbakonam; (b) any penalty,
forfeiture or punishment incurred in respect of any offence committed against
the District Municipalities Act; or (c) any investigation,
legal proceedings or remedy in respect of such penalty, forfeiture or
punishment, and any such penalty, forfeiture or punishment may be imposed as if
this Act had not been passed. (3) Notwithstanding
anything contained in sub-section (1), all appointments, notifications,
notices, rules, bye-laws, regulations, orders, directions, licences,
permissions, schemes, forms and powers, made or issued or conferred under the
District Municipalities Act and in force on the date of the commencement of
this Act shall, so far as they are not inconsistent with the provisions of this
Act, continue to be in force in the local area comprised within the city of
Kumbakonam until they are replaced by the appointments, notifications, notices,
rules, bye-laws, regulations, orders, directions, licences, permissions,
schemes, forms and powers to be made or issued or conferred under this Act. (1) Save as otherwise
expressly provided herein, all the provisions of the 1981 Act, including the
provisions relating to the levy and collection of any tax or fee are hereby
extended to and shall apply, mutatis mutandis to the corporation and the 1981
Act shall, in relation to the corporation, be read and construed as if the
provisions of this Act had formed part of the 1981 Act. (2) For the purpose of
facilitating the application of the provisions of the 1981 Act to the
corporation, the Government may, by notification, make such adaptations and
modifications of the 1981 Act and the rules and bye-laws made thereunder,
whether by way of repealing, amending or suspending any provisions thereof, as
may be necessary or expedient and thereupon, the 1981 Act and the rules made
thereunder, shall apply to the corporation subject to the adaptations and
modifications so made. (3) Notwithstanding that
no provision or insufficient provision has been made under sub-section (2) for
the adaptation of the provisions of the 1981 Act, or the rules and bye-laws
made thereunder, any court, tribunal or authority required or empowered to
enforce these provisions may, for the purpose of facilitating their application
to the corporation, construe these provisions in such manner, without affecting
the substance, as may be necessary or proper having regard to the matter before
the court, tribunal or authority. (4) In the 1981 Act as
extended and applied to the city of Kumbakonam, (a) any reference to the
city of Coimbatore and Coimbatore municipality, shall by reason of this Act, be
construed as a reference to the city of Kumbakonam and Kumbakonam municipality,
respectively; and (b) any reference to the
Coimbatore Corporation, Corporation of Coimbatore and Municipal Corporation of
Coimbatore, shall by reason of this Act, be construed as a reference to the
Kumbakonam Corporation, Corporation of Kumbakonam and Municipal Corporation of
Kumbakonam, respectively. (1) All property, all
rights of whatever kind, used, enjoyed or possessed by and all interests of
whatever kind owned by or vested in, or held in trust by or for the municipal
council with all rights of whatever kind used, enjoyed or possessed by the
municipal council as well as all liabilities legally subsisting against the
municipal council, on and from the date of the commencement of this Act and
subject to such directions as the Government may, by general or special order,
give in this behalf, vest with the corporation. (2) All arrears of taxes
or other payments by way of composition for a tax, or due for expenses or
compensation, or otherwise due to the municipal council on the date of such
commencement may be recovered as if they had accrued to the corporation and may
be recovered as if such arrears or payments had become due, under the provisions
of this Act. (3) All taxes, fees and
duties, which immediately before the date of the commencement of this Act were
being levied by the municipal council shall be deemed to have been levied by
the corporation under the provisions of this Act and shall continue to be in
force accordingly until such taxes, fees and duties are revised, cancelled or
superseded by anything done or any action taken under this Act. (4) All proceedings taken
by, or against, the municipal council or authority or any person under the
District Municipalities Act may be continued by, or against, the corporation,
authority or person as if such proceedings had been commenced under the
provisions of this Act. (5) Any action taken
under the District Municipalities Act, by any authority before the date of such
commencement shall be deemed to have been taken by the authority competent to
take such action under this Act as if this Act had been in force. (6) Notwithstanding
anything contained in this Act, every officer or employee who, immediately
before the date of the commencement of this Act, was in the service of the
municipality shall, on and from the date of such commencement, be deemed to be
an officer or employee of the corporation: Provided that (a) the terms and
conditions applicable to such officers and employees consequent on their
absorption in the service of the corporation shall not be less favorable than
those applicable to such employees immediately before the date of such
commencement, as regards pay and allowances, leave, pension, gratuity, provident
fund and age of superannuation; and (b) the service rendered
by any such officer or other employee under the municipality upto the date of
such commencement shall be deemed to be service under the corporation and he
shall be entitled to count that service for the purpose of increment, leave,
pension, provident fund and gratuity: Provided further that any officer or other
employee serving in the municipality shall be given an option to be exercised
within such time and in such manner as may be prescribed either to be absorbed
in the service of the corporation or to be transferred to the service referred
to in section 73-A of the District Municipalities Act or to be retrenched from
the service of the municipality on such retrenchment benefits as may be
prescribed. (7) Any division of the
Kumbakonam municipality into wards, made under the District Municipalities Act,
and in force on the date of the commencement of this Act shall be deemed to be
a division of the corporation until altered. (8) The electoral roll
prepared for the Kumbakonam municipality under the District Municipalities Act,
and in force on the date of the commencement of this Act, shall be deemed to be
the electoral roll for the corporation until a new electoral roll is prepared
and published and the part of the electoral roll relating to each ward of the
municipality shall be deemed to be the list of the electoral roll for the
corresponding division of the corporation. (1) There shall be
appointed by the Government, by notification, a Special Officer to exercise the
powers, perform the duties and discharge the functions of. (a) the council, (b) the standing
committee, (c) the commissioner, and (d) the wards committee. (2) The Special Officer
shall exercise the powers, perform the duties and discharge the functions, (a) of the corporation,
until the elected councillors come into office; (b) of the standing
committee, until a standing committee is appointed by the corporation; and (c) of the commissioner, until
a commissioner is appointed by the Government and such officer may, if the
Government so direct, receive remuneration for his services from the municipal
fund. (3) Until a new Special
Officer is appointed by the Government under sub-section (1), the Special Officer
of the municipality functioning immediately before the date of commencement of
this Act shall be deemed to be the Special Officer of the corporation and he
shall exercise the powers and perform the duties and discharge the functions as
those exercised, performed and discharged by the Special Officer appointed
under sub-section (1). (4) The Special Officer
appointed under sub-section (1) shall hold office for six months from the date
of his appointment or until the day on which the first meeting of the council
is held after ordinary elections to the corporation, whichever is earlier. (1) The Government may
make rules for carrying out the purposes of this Act. (2) (a) All rules made
under this Act shall be published in the Tamil Nadu Government Gazette and,
unless they are expressed to come into force on a particular day, shall come
into force on the day on which they are so published. (3) Every rule made or
notification or order issued under this Act shall, as soon as possible, after
it is made or issued, be placed on the table of the Legislative Assembly, and
if, before the expiry of the session in which it is so placed or the next
session, the Assembly makes any modification in any such rule or notification
or order, or the Assembly decides that the rule or notification or order should
not be made or issued, the rule or notification or order shall thereafter have
effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be, so,
however, that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to
the validity of anything previously done under that rule or notification or
order. ? If any difficulty arises in giving effect to
the provisions of this Act, the Government may, by an order published in the
Tamil Nadu Government Gazette, make such provisions not inconsistent with the
provisions of this Act as appear to them to be necessary or expedient for
removing the difficulty: Provided that no such order shall be made
after the expiry of two years from the date of the commencement of this Act. (1) The Kumbakonam City
Municipal Corporation Ordinance, 2021 is hereby repealed. (2) Notwithstanding such
repeal, anything done, any action taken or any direction given under the said
Ordinance, shall be deemed to have been done, taken or given under this Act.Kumbakonam
City Municipal Corporation Act, 2022
(b) All notifications issued under this Act shall, unless they are expressed to
come into force on a particular day, come into force on the day on which they
are so published.