MADRAS PANCHAYATS (AMENDMENT AND MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS) ACT, 1964

Preamble - MADRAS PANCHAYATS (AMENDMENT AND MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS) ACT, 1964

THE MADRAS PANCHAYATS (AMENDMENT AND MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS) ACT, 1964

[Act No. 18 of 1964]

[26th August, 1964]

PREAMBLE

An Act to amend the Madras Panchayats Act, 1958, and to provide for the constitution of panchayat unions in the added territory and for certain other matters.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Madras in the Fifteenth Year of the Republic of India as follows :--

Section 1 - Short title and commencement

(1)     This Act may be called the Madras Panchayats (Amendment and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1964.

 

(2)     It shall come into force at once.

Section 2 - Amendment of section 2, Madras Act XXXV of 1958

In section 2 of the Madras Panchayats Act, 1958 (Madras Act XXXV of 1958) [hereinafter referred to as the principal Act]--

(i)       for clause (17), the following clause shall be substituted, namely :--

" (17) ' member' means a member of a panchayat or of a panchayat union council, as the case may be, and includes a co-opted member,";

(ii)      after clause (31), the following clause shall be inserted, namely :--

(31-a) 'Scheduled Tribes' shall have the same meaning as in the Constitution of India;".

Section 3 - Substitution of new section for section 12, Madras Act XXXV of 1958

For section 12 of the principal Act, the following section shall be substituted, namely :--

" 12. Composition and strength of a panchayat union council.--

(1)     A panchayat union council constituted for any panchayat union shall consist of?

 

(i)       the presidents of all panchayats in the panchayat union; and

 

(ii)      one non-official member of each township committee in the panchayat union chosen in the prescribed manner :

Provided that if among the members of a panchayat union council, there are no women or members of the Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes or the number whether of women or of the members of the Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes is less than three, the panchayat union council may co-opt such number of women or members of the Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes as may be necessary to ensure that the council includes three women and three members of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

(2)     Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1),--

 

(i)       subject to such conditions as may be prescribed in this behalf, the Government may, by notification, specify any panchayat union, and upon the issue of such notification, all the members of panchayats and township committees in that panchayat union shall become members of the panchayat union council;

 

(ii)      in the case of a panchayat union where there is only one panchayat or township committee, all the members of that panchayat or of that township committee, as the case may be, shall be members of the panchayat union council concerned.

 

 

(3)     A member of the State Legislative Assembly representing a constituency comprising the whole or any part of a panchayat development block and any member of the State Legislative Council residing in a panchayat development block shall be entitled to take part in the proceedings of the panchayat union council but shall not be entitled to vote therein :

Provided that nothing contained in this sub-section shall be deemed to disentitle a member of the State Legislative Assembly representing a constituency comprising the whole or any part of a panchayat development block or any member of the State Legislative Council residing in a panchayat development block who having been elected as president of a panchayat becomes a member of the panchayat union council, to be elected as chairman or vice-chairman of the panchayat union council.

(4)     The members of every panchayat union council shall come into office on such date as may be fixed by the Government, by notification.

Section 4 - Amendment of section 15, Madras Act XXXV of 1958

In section 15 of the principal Act,--

(i)       in the marginal heading, for the words " Scheduled Castes and co-optation of women", the words " Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and co-optation of women" shall be substituted;

 

(ii)      in sub-section (1), for the words "reserve such number of seats, if any,", the words " reserve such number of seats not exceeding three ", and for the words " Scheduled Castes ", the words " Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes " shall be substituted;

 

 

(iii)     in sub-section (2), for the words " ten years ", the words " twenty years " shall be substituted;

 

(iv)    in sub-section (3), for the words " Scheduled Castes ", the words " Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes " shall be substituted.

Section 5 - Substitution of new section for section 19, Madras Act XXXV of 1958

For section 19 of the principal Act, the following section shall be substituted, namely :--

" 19. Tenure of members of panchayat union council.--

The term of office of members of every panchayat union council including a co-opted member shall expire on the date of expiry of the term of five years specified in sub-section (1) of section 17 :

Provided that a member of a panchayat union council shall cease to hold office as such if he ceases to be a president or a member, as the case may be, of a panchayat or a member of a township committee, in the panchayat union."

Section 6 - Amendment of section 22, Madras Act XXXV of 1958

In section 22 of the principal Act, the words " or panchayat union council " shall be omitted.

Section 7 - Amendment of section 25, Madras Act XXXV of 1958

In sub-section (2) of section 25 of the principal Act,--

(i)       in clause (c), for the words " the panchayat or the panchayat union council", the words " any panchayat or any panchayat union council " shall be substituted;

 

(ii)      in clause (f), the words " of the panchayat union council as the case may be " in both places where they occur shall be omitted.

Section 8 - Amendment of section 26, Madras Act XXXV of 1958

In clause (d) of section 26 of the principal Act, for the words " the panchayat or the panchayat union council ", the words " any panchayat or any panchayat union council " shall be substituted.

Section 9 - Amendment of section 28, Madras Act XXXV of 1958

In sub-section (1) of section 28 of the principal Act, for the words " or panchayat union council", where they occur for the first time, the words " or who becomes a member of a panchayat union council " shall be substituted.

"10. Amendment of section 32, Madras Act XXXV of 1958.--

Sub-section (3) of section 32 of the principal Act shall be omitted.

" 11. Insertion of new section 32-A in Madras Act XXXV of 1958.--

After section 32 of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted, namely :--

" 32-A. President, vice-president or member not to cease to hold office.--

Without prejudice to the provisions of section 32, the president, vice-president or a member of a panchayat, as the case may be, or a member of a township committee, shall not cease to hold office as such on his election as chairman or vice-chairman of any panchayat union council."

Section 12 - Amendment of section 36, Madras Act XXXV of 1958

To sub-section (2) of section 36 of the principal Act, the following proviso shall be added, namely :--

" Provided that in the case of a panchayat union council referred to in clause (ii) of sub-section (2) of section 12, where all the members of the council are either members of a single panchayat or members of a single township committee,

(i)       the president and vice-president of the panchayat shall respectively be the chairman and vice-chairman of the panchayat union council;

 

(ii)      the chairman of the township committee shall be the chairman of the panchayat union council and a member of the township committee chosen in the prescribed manner shall be the vice-chairman of the panchayat union council."

Section 13 - Amendment of section 115, Madras Act XXXV of 1958.--

For the Explanation to sub-section (1) of section 115 of the principal Act, the following Explanation shall be substituted and shall be deemed always to have been substituted, namely :--

"Explanation.-- In this section and in section 116, 'land revenue ' means public revenue due on land and includes water cess payable to the Government for water supplied or used for the irrigation of land, royalty, lease amount or other sum payable to the Government in respect of land held direct from the Government on lease or licence, but does not include any other cess or the surcharge payable under section 116, provided that land revenue remitted shall not be deemed to be land revenue payable for the purpose of this section."

Section 14 - Amendment of section 154, Madras Act XXXV of 1958.--

In sub-section (4) of section 154 of the principal Act, the words, brackets and figure " sub-section (1) of " shall be omitted.

Section 15 - Amendment of section" 178, Madras Act XXXV of 1958.--

In sub-section (2) of section 178 of the principal Act,--

(i)       in clause (iii), for the words " Scheduled Castes" in both places where they occur, the words " Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes " shall be substituted;

 

(ii)      after clause (xvi), the following clause shall be inserted, namely :--

" (xvi-a) as to the powers of auditors to disallow and surcharge items, appeals against orders of disallowance or surcharge, and recovery of sums disallowed or surcharged; ".

Section 16 - Amendment of section 179, Madras Act XXXV of 1958

In section 179 of the principal Act,--

(i)       in sub-section (1), the brackets and figure " (1) " shall be omitted;

 

(ii)      sub-sections (2), (3) and (4) shall be omitted.

Section 17 - Insertion of new section 188-A. in Madras Act XXXV of 1958.--

After section 188 of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted, namely :--

" 188-A. Special provisions in the case of new panchayat unions.--

(1)     Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, when a panchayat union is newly constituted for a panchayat development block under this Act or under the Madras Panchayats (Amendment and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1964, the Government may appoint the Development Officer referred to in sub-section (1) of section 44 as special officer to exercise the powers, discharge the duties and perform the functions of the panchayat union council, its chairman or commissioner, as the case may be.

 

(2)     The special officer shall exercise the powers, discharge the duties and perform the functions of the panchayat union council, its chairman or commissioner until the members of the panchayat union council have come into office and a chairman has been elected or a commissioner has been appointed, as the case may be.

 

 

(3)     As soon as may be after the members of a panchayat union council have come into office, a meeting of the panchayat union council shall be held on a day and at a time fixed by the special officer for the election of a chairman. If at such meeting, no chairman is elected, a fresh election shall be held on such day and at such time as may be fixed by the special officer.

 

(4)     Where in any newly constituted panchayat union or part thereof, there is no panchayat, the special officer shall exercise all the powers including the power of taxation, discharge the duties, perform the functions and be credited with the receipts and debited with the charges of the panchayat and shall also exercise the powers, discharge the duties and perform the functions of the president and the executive authority respectively in the panchayat union or part thereof."

Section 18 - Amendment of section 198, Madras Act XXXV of 1958.--

In section 198 of the principal Act,--

(i)       in sob-section (1), the brackets and figure " (1) " shall be omitted;

 

(ii)      sub-section (2) shall be omitted.

Section 19 - Insertion of new section 199 in Madras Act XXXV of 1958.--

After section 198 of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted, namely :--

" 199. Rules, notifications and orders to be placed before the Legislature.--

(1)     All rules, notifications and orders made or issued under thin Act shall be published in the Fort St: George 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.

 

(2)     Every rule, notification or order made or issued under this Act shall, as soon as possible after it is made or issued, be placed on the table of both Houses of the Legislature, and if, before the expiry of the session in which it is so placed or the next session, both Houses agree in making any modification in any such rule, notification or order, or both Houses agree that the rule, notification or order should not be made or issued, the rule, 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, notification or order."

Section 20 - Definitions

In this Part and in Part V, unless the context otherwise requires,--

(a)      " added territory " means the territories specified in the Second Schedule to the Andhra Pradesh and Madras (Alteration of Boundaries) Act, 1959 (Central Act 56 of 1959);

 

(b)      " Extension Act " means the Madras District Development Councils and Panchayats (Extension to Added Territory) Act, 1961 (Madras Act 28 of 1961);

 

 

(c)      " Panchayats Act " means the Madras Panchayats Act, 1958 (Madras Act XXXV of 1958) as in force in the added territory;

 

(d)      " Schedule " means the Schedule to this Act;

 

 

(e)      " Village Panchayats Act " means the Madras Village Panchayats Act, 1950 (Madras Act X of 1950) as amended by the Andhra or Andhra Pradesh Legislature and in force in the added territory

Section 21 - Constitution of panchayat unions in the added territory

(1)     Notwithstanding anything contained in the Panchayats Act or in the Extension Act, on and from the date of the commencement of this Act?

 

(a)      each of the local areas specified in column (2) of the Schedule forming a development block specified in the corresponding entry in column (1) thereof for the purposes of the National Extension Service Scheme of Community Development shall be a panchayat development block and such panchayat development block shall be a panchayat union by the name specified in the corresponding entry in column (3) thereof;

 

(b)      there shall be a panchayat union council for each of the panchayat unions specified in column (3) of the said Schedule.

Explanation I.-- Every panchayat development block formed under clause (a) shall be deemed to be a panchayat development block declared under clause (a) of sub-section (3) of section 7 of the Panchayats Act.

Explanation II.--Every panchayat union constituted and named under clause (a) shall be deemed to be a panchayat union declared and named respectively under clauses (b) and (c) of sub-section (3) of section 7 of the Panchayats Act.

Explanation III.-- Every panchayat union council constituted under clause (b) shall be deemed to be a panchayat union council constituted under sub-section (1) of section 11 of the Panchayats Act.

(2)     For the removal of doubts, it is hereby declared that the provisions of sub-sections (4), (5) and (6) of section 7 of the Panchayats Act shall apply in relation to every panchayat development block in the added territory which is deemed under sub-section (1) to be a panchayat union declared and named respectively under clauses (b) and (c) of sub-section (3) of section 7 of the Panchayats Act.

Section 22 - Definitions

In this Part, unless the context otherwise requires,--

(a)      " Extension of Term of Office Act " means the Madras Local Authorities (Extension of Term of Office of Members) Act, 1962 (Madras Act 12 of 1962);

 

(b)      The expressions " casual vacancy," " casual election ", " ordinary vacancy " and " ordinary election " shall have the same meanings as in the principal Act.

Section 23 - Determination of term of office and election of members.--

Notwithstanding anything contained in the principal Act as amended by this Act or in the Extension of Term of Office Act,--

(a)      the term of office of the members of any panchayat or panchayat union council as a whole which has been extended by section 3 of the Extension of Term of Office Act shall expire on such date as the State Government may, by notification, specify in this behalf:

Provided that the date specified in such notification may, for sufficient cause, be cancelled or modified by the State Government, by notification;

(b)      the next ordinary elections to fill ordinary vacancies in the office of the members of a panchayat constituted under the principal Act as amended by this Act shall be held and the newly elected members may come into office on such date as may be fixed by the State Government, by notification, but such date shall be subsequent to the date of expiry of the term of office of the members specified under clause (a) :

Provided that the date so fixed may, from time to time, be advanced or postponed to another date, by the State Government, by notification;

(c)      elections may be held to any panchayat newly constituted under the principal Act as amended by this Act, and the provisions of clause (b) shall, so far as may be, apply to the first elections to be so held;

 

(d)      casual election may be held to fill any casual vacancy in the office of a member of a panchayat occurring after the holding of elections referred to in clause (b) or clause (c), as the case may be.

Section 24 - Validation of local cess and local cess surcharge wider the Madras Panchayats Act, 1958

Notwithstanding anything contained in any judgment, decree or order of any court, no levy or collection of local cess or local cess surcharge by a panchayat union council under the principal Act prior to the date of the commencement of this Act (hereinafter in this Part referred to as the said date) shall be deemed to be invalid or ever to have been invalid on the ground only that land revenue with reference to which the panchayat union council was empowered to levy the local cess or local cess surcharge did not comprise royalty, lease amount or other sum payable to the State Government in respect of land held direct from the State Government on lease or licence, and such cess or surcharge levied or collected or purporting to have been levied or collected shall, for all purposes, be deemed to be and to have always been validly levied or collected and accordingly--

(a)      all acts, proceedings or things done or taken by a panchayat union council or any authority, officer or person in connection with the levy or collection of any local cess or local cess surcharge shall, for all purposes, be deemed to be and to have always been done or taken in accordance with law;

 

(b)      no suit or other proceeding shall be maintained or continued in any court for the refund of any local cess or local cess surcharge so paid;

 

 

(c)      no court shall enforce any decree or order directing the refund of any local cess or local cess surcharge so paid;

 

(d)      any local cess or local cess surcharge which becomes leviable under the principal Act as amended by this Act for any period before the said date may be levied and collected in the manner provided under the principal Act as amended by this Act.

Section 25 - Validation of certain acts done and proceedings taken in the added territory

Notwithstanding anything contained in any judgment, decree or order of any court, no tax, cess or fee levied or collected, no permit or licence granted, no registration effected and no act done or proceeding taken in the added territory by any aggregate of individuals or by any other authority, officer or person in the purported exercise of the powers or the purported discharge of the duties or the purported performance of the functions of a panchayat or its president or executive authority on or after the 1st April 1960 and before the said date under the Village Panchayats Act, or of a panchayat union council or its chairman or commissioner on or after the 2nd October 1961 and before the said date under the Panchayats Act, shall be deemed to be invalid or ever to have been invalid on the ground that such aggregate of individuals was not a duly constituted panchayat or panchayat union council, as the case may be, or on the ground that the authority, officer or person aforesaid was not duly empowered to levy or collect any tax, cess or fee or to grant any permit or licence or to effect any registration or to do any act or to take any proceeding and any tax, cess or fee levied or collected, any permit or licence granted or registration effected or any act done or proceeding taken as 'aforesaid shall for all purposes be deemed to be and to have always been validly levied or collected or granted or effected or done or taken and accordingly,--

(a)      all acts done or proceedings taken by the aggregate of individuals or by any other authority, officer or person aforesaid shall for all purposes be deemed to be and to have always been done or taken in accordance with law;

 

(b)      no suit or other proceeding shall be maintained or continued in any court for the refund of any tax, cess or fee so paid or for the cancellation of any permit or licence so granted or registration so effected;

 

 

(c)      no court shall enforce any decree or order directing the refund of any tax, cess or fee so paid or directing the cancellation of any permit or licence so granted or registration so effected;

 

(d)      any tax, cess or fee leviable by a panchayat under the Village Panchayats Act on and after the 1st April 1960 and before the said date or by a panchayat union council under the Panchayats Act on and after the 2nd October 1961 and before the said date but not so levied may be levied and collected in the manner provided under the said Acts.

Section 26 - Vesting of property

With effect on and from the said date, all assets and liabilities of any aggregate of individuals which purported to exercise the powers, discharge the duties and perform the functions of a panchayat or its president or executive authority on or after the 1st April 1960 or of a panchayat union council or its chairman or commissioner on or after the 2nd October 1961 in the added territory as well as all liabilities legally subsisting against the aggregate of individuals aforesaid shall stand transferred to and vested in the State Government, and upon the constitution of the panchayat union councils in the added territory, the State Government may pass such orders as they may deem fit as to the disposal of the assets vested in them and the discharge of the liabilities.

Section 27 - Repeals

(1)     Subject to the provisions of section 25, the Madras Village Panchayats Act, 1950 (Madras Act X of 1950) as amended by the Andhra or Andhra Pradesh Legislature and in force in the added territory is hereby repealed; and it is hereby declared that the provisions of section 8 of the Madras General Clauses Act, 1891 (Madras Act I of 1891) shall not apply to such repeal.

 

(2)     The Madras Panchayat Union Councils (Special Provisions for First Constitution) Act, 1960 (Madras Act 17 of 1960) in its application to the added territory is hereby repealed.

 

 

(3)     Clauses (a), (b) and (d) of, and Explanations I, II and III to, sub-section (2) of section 4 and Schedule I to the Madras District Development Councils and Panchayats (Extension to Added Territory) Act, 1961 (Madras Act 28 of 1961) are hereby repealed.

Section 28 - Power to remove difficulties.--

If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the State Government may, as occasion may require, by order do anything which appears to them to be necessary for the purpose of removing the difficulty.

Section 29 - Orders and notifications to be placed before the Legislature.--

Every order or notification issued under this Act shall, as soon as possible after it is issued, be placed on the table of both Houses of the Legislature, and if, before the expiry of the session in which it is so placed or the next session, both Houses agree in making any modification in any such order or notification or both Houses agree that the order or notification should not be issued, the order or notification 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 order or notification.

Schedule - SCHEDULE

The Schedule

[Set section 21 (1) (a) and (b)]