Power of Councils to make bye-laws

(1) The power to make all bye-laws under this Act shall be exercisable by each Council, subject to the previous sanction of the Director or the Government as hereinafter provided. (2) Without prejudice to any power to make bye-laws contained elsewhere in this Act, a Council may make bye-laws consistent with this Act and the rules made thereunder for the administration of its affairs and for the guidance of its Committees, officers and servants. (3) (a) The Council, whenever it desires to make bye-laws under this Act, shall by a resolution at a special meeting approve a draft of such bye-laws. (b) The Council shall put up the draft on its notice board and publish it in a local newspaper, as soon as may be possible, after such resolution is passed, inviting the inhabitants to submit their objections and suggestions to the Council within a reasonable period to be specified in such notice. (c) The Council at a special meeting shall then consider the objections and suggestions received, if any, and shall by a resolution approve the final draft of the bye-laws. (d) Within seven days of the passing of such resolution, the Council shall send such final draft to the Director. (e) The Director shall examine the final draft of the bye-laws sent to him under clause (d) and may— (i) refuse to sanction them or return them to the Council if in his opinion,— (A) the bye-laws are inconsistent with this Act or the rules made thereunder and the inconsistency cannot be removed except by materially altering the bye-laws; or (B) objection, if any, to the bye-laws has not been duly considered by the Council; or (C) there is any new objection to the bye-laws; or (D) the rates of taxes or fees proposed in the bye-laws are inadequate; or (ii) sanction them, with or without such modifications as he considers necessary. The Director shall publish the bye-laws as sanctioned by him in the Official Gazette and the bye-laws so published shall take effect from the date of their publication in the Official Gazette or such other subsequent date as may be mentioned therein; (f) Notwithstanding anything contained in clause (e), if the bye-laws sent by any Council under clause (d) relate to imposition, abolition, remission, alteration or regulation of any tax, the Director shall forward them to the Government for sanction and thereupon the provisions of clause (e) shall apply as if for the word “Director” in the said clause the word “Government” had been substituted. (4) If it appears to the Government that an amendment of any of the bye-laws of a Council is necessary or desirable in the interests of the general public or because they are inconsistent with any provisions of this Act or the rules made thereunder, the Government may, after consulting the Council, by notification in the Official Gazette, amend or cancel any of the bye-laws, and on the issue of such notification the bye-laws shall be deemed to have been duly amended or cancelled, as the case may be, accordingly, without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done or omitted to be done.