Chapter IX Chapter IX

Penalties and Procedure

Penalty for removing bar, chain or post.–– If any person, without lawful authority, infringes any order given, or removes any bar, chain or post fixed, under sub-section

1. (2) of section 48, he shall be punishable with fine which may extend to five thousand rupees.

Penalty for building within street alignment or building line without permission.–– If any person, without the permission of the Board, erects, re-erects, adds to or alters any wall or building so as to make the same project into the street alignment or beyond the building line specified in any deferred street scheme, development scheme or town expansion scheme, he shall be punishable––

1. (a) with fine which may extend, in the case of a wall or masonry building, to fifty thousand rupees and, in any other case, to five thousand rupees; and
2. (b) with further fine which may extend, in the case of a wall or masonry building, to ten thousand rupees and, in any other case, to one thousand rupees for each day after the first during which the projection continues.

Penalty for failure to comply with requisition made by auditor.–– If any person fails to comply with any requisition made by the auditor under section 90, he shall be punishable––

1. (a) with fine which may extend to ten thousand rupees;
2. (b) in case of a continuing failure, with further fine which may extend to five thousand rupees for each day after the first during which the failure continues.

Penalty for obstructing contractor or removing mark.–– If any person––

1. (a) obstructs or molests any person with whom the Chairman has entered into a contract on behalf of the Board, in the performance or execution by such person of his duty or of anything which he is empowered or required to do by virtue of or in consequence of this Act or any rule or regulation made thereunder; or
2. (b) removes any mark set up for the purpose of indicating any level or direction necessary to the execution of works authorised by this Act or any rule or regulation made or scheme sanctioned thereunder, he shall be punishable with fine which may extend to twenty thousand rupees.

Penalty for breach of the provisions of the Act.–– Whoever contravenes any of the provisions of the Act or of any rule or regulation made or scheme sanctioned thereunder, shall if no other penalty is provided for such contravention, be punishable––

1. (a) with fine which may extend to ten thousand rupees; and
2. (b) in case of continuing contravention, with further fine which may extend to five thousand rupees for each day after the first during which the contravention continues.

Compensation to be paid by offenders.––

1. (1) When any person is convicted of any offence under this Act or any rule or regulation made thereunder, the magistrate convicting such person may, on application made in this behalf by the Board or by its officer or other employees authorised by it in this behalf, call upon such person forthwith to show cause as to why he should not pay compensation to the Board for the damage caused by his act or omission in respect of which he is convicted.
2. (2) The magistrate shall record and consider any cause which such person may show and if the magistrate, after making such inquiry as he may think fit, is satisfied that such person is liable to pay compensation, may direct that compensation of an amount not less than one lakh rupees as he may determine, be paid by such person to the Board.
3. (3) The amount of compensation directed to be paid under sub-section
4. (2) shall, if it is not paid forthwith, be recovered as if it were a fine imposed by the magistrate on such person.

Punishment for acquiring share or interest in contract, with Board.–– If any member or any officer or other employee of the Board acquires, directly or indirectly, by himself or by any partner, otherwise than as such member, officer or other employees, any share of interest in any contract with, by or on behalf of

member) he shall be deemed to have committed the offence made punishable by section 168 of the Indian Penal Code.

Cognizance and trial of offences.––

1. (1) No court shall take cognizance of any offence punishable under this Act or any rule of regulation made thereunder unless complaint of such offence is made within six months next after the commission thereof.
2. (2) No court inferior to that of a Magistrate of the First Class shall try any offence punishable under this Act, or any rule or regulation made thereunder.

Duty of Police Officers.–– It shall be the duty of every police officer––

1. (a) to co-operate with the Secretary for carrying into effect and enforcing the provisions of this Act or any rule enforcing the provisions of this Act or any rule or regulation made thereunder;
2. (b) to communicate without delay to the proper officer or servant of the Board any information which he receives of a design to commit or of the commission of any offence against this Act or any rule made thereunder; and
3. (c) to assist the Secretary or any officer or other employee of the Board reasonably demanding his aid for the lawful exercise of any power vesting in the Secretary or in such officer or other employee under this Act or any rule made thereunder.

Arrest of offenders.––

1. (1) Any police officer not below the rank of a head constable may arrest any person who commits in his presence any offence against this Act or any rule or regulation made thereunder, if the name or address of such person be unknown to him, and if such person on demand declines to give his name or address, or gives a name or address which such officer has reason to believe to be false.
2. (2) No person so arrested shall be detained in custody after his true name and address are ascertained, or for any longer time than is necessary for bringing him before a Magistrate, and in no case shall such detention exceed twenty-four hours from the time of arrest without the orders of a Magistrate.

Powers of Secretary as to institution and composition, of legal proceedings.–– The Secretary may, subject to the control of the Board,––

1. (a) institute, defend or withdraw from legal proceedings under this Act or any rules or regulations made thereunder;
2. (b) compound any offence against this Act or any rules or regulations made thereunder which, under any law for the time being in force, may lawfully be compound;
3. (c) admit, compromise or withdraw any claim made under this Act or any rules or regulations made thereunder; and
4. (d) obtain such legal advice and assistance as he may think it necessary or expedient to obtain, or as may be desired by the Board to obtain, for any of the purposes referred to in the foregoing clauses or for securing the lawful exercise or discharge of any power or duty vested in or imposed upon the Board or any officer or other employees of the Board.

Protection of action taken in good faith.–– No suit, prosecution or other legal proceeding shall lie against the board or any committee thereof or any officer or other employee of the Government or of the board for anything which is in good faith done or intended to be done in pursuance of this Act or any rule or regulation made thereunder.

Notice of suit against Board.–– No suit shall be instituted against the Board, or any member or any officer or other employee of the Board, or any person acting under the direction of the Board, or of the Chairman or of any officer or other employee of the Board, in respect of any act done or intended to be done under this Act or any rule or regulation made thereunder until the expiration of sixty days next after written notice has been delivered or left at the office of the Board or the place of abode of such officer, employee or person, stating the cause of action, the name and place of abode of the intending plaintiff, and the relief which he claims, and the plaint must contain a statement that such notice has been so delivered or left.

Proof of consent of Board or Chairman or officer or other employee of Board.–– Whenever, under this Act or any rule or regulation made thereunder, the doing or the omission to do anything or the validity of anything depends upon the approval, sanction, consent, concurrence, declaration, opinion, or satisfaction of––

1. (a) the Board or the Chairman, or
2. (b) any officer or other employee of the Board, a written document signed by the Chairman, in case of item
3. (a) and by the said officer or other employee in the case of item (b), conveying or setting forth such approval, sanction, consent, concurrence, declaration, opinion or satisfaction, shall be sufficient evidence of such approval, sanction, consent, concurrence, declaration, opinion or satisfaction.

Power of Secretary to direct removal of unauthorised erection, within street alignment.––

1. (1) The Secretary may, by a written notice, require the owner for the time being of the wall or building referred to in section 98 to stop further work on such wall or building and alter or demolish the same in such manner and within such time as may be specified in the notice.
2. (2) Where the alteration or demolition directed by any such notice is not carried out as directed therein, the Secretary may cause the wall or building or portion thereof to be altered or demolished, as the case may be, and he may recover the expenses incurred in so doing from the owner for the time being in such manner as may be prescribed.

Power of Board to pay compensation.–– In any case not otherwise expressly provided for in this Act, the Board may pay reasonable compensation to any person who sustains damage by reason of the exercise of any of the powers vested by or under this Act in the Board or the Chairman or any officer or employee of the Board.

Public notices how to be made known.–– Every public notice given under this Act or any rule or regulation made thereunder shall be in writing and under the signature of the Chairman or any person authorised by him in this behalf and shall be widely made known in the locality to be affected thereby, by affixing copies thereof in conspicuous public places within the said locality, or by publishing the same by beat of drum or by advertisement in leading daily newspapers, or by any tow or more of these means, and by any other means that the Chairman may thin fit.

Stamping signature on notices or bills Stamping signature on notices or bills.–– Every notice or bill, which is required by this Act or by any rule or regulation made thereunder to be the signature of the Secretary or any other member or of any officer or other employee of the Board, shall be deemed to be properly signed if it bears a facsimile of the signature of the Secretary or of such other member or of such officer or employee, as the case may be, stamped thereupon.

Service how to be effected.–– When any notice, bill or other document is required by this Act or any rule or regulation made thereunder to be served upon or issued or presented to any person, such service, issue or presentation shall be effected––

1. (a) by giving or tendering such document to such person; or
2. (b) if such person is not found, by leaving such document at his last known place of abode, or by giving or tendering the same to some adult member or servant of his family;
3. (c) if his address elsewhere is known, by forwarding such document to him by registered post under cover bearing the said address; or
4. (d) if none of the means aforesaid be available, by causing a copy of such document to be affixed on some conspicuous part of the building or land, if any, to which the document relates.

Power to make surveys, or contribute towards their cost.–– The Board may––

1. (a) cause the survey of any land to be made, whenever it considers that a survey is necessary or expedient for carrying out any of the purposes of this Act; or
2. (b) contribute towards the cost of any such survey made by any other local authority.

Power of entry.––

1. (1) The Secretary or any person either generally or specially authorised by the Secretary in this behalf may, with or without assistants or workmen, enter into or upon any land, in order.––
   • (a) to make any inspection, survey, measurement, valuation or inquiry,
   • (b) to take levels,
   • (c) to dig or bore into the sub-soil,
   • (d) to set out boundaries and intended lines of work,
   • (e) to mark such levels, boundaries and lines by placing marks and cutting trenches, or
   • (f) to do any other thing, whenever it is necessary to do so for any of the purposes of this Act or any rule or regulation made or scheme sanctioned thereunder or any scheme which the Board intends to frame thereunder: Provided that––
   • (a) no such entry shall be made between sunset and sunrise;
   • (b) no dwelling house, and no public building or hut which is used as a dwelling place, shall be so entered, except with the consent of the occupier thereof, without giving the said occupier at least twenty-four hours, previous written notice of the intention to make such entry;
   • (c) sufficient notice shall, in every instance, be given even when any premises may otherwise be entered without notice, to enable the inmates of any apartment appropriated to women to remove themselves to some part of the premises where their privacy will not be disturbed;
   • (d) due regard shall always be had, so far as may be compatible with the exigencies of the purpose for which the entry is made, to the social and religious usages of the occupants of the premises entered.
2. (2) whenever the Secretary or a person authorized under sub-section
3. (1) enters into or upon any land in pursuance of that sub-section, he shall, at the time of such entry pay or tender payment for all necessary damage to be done as aforesaid; and, in case of dispute as to the sufficiency of the amount so paid or tendered, he shall at once refer the dispute to the Board, whose decision thereon shall be final.