Chapter 9 CONDUCT OF BUSINESS

(1) The first meeting of a municipality after the general election of councillors to the municipality shall be convened within thirty days from the date of publication of the names of elected councillors in the Official Gazette under the provisions relating to municipal elections in the State. (2) Seven days’ notice shall be given for the meeting. (3) In the case of a Municipal Corporation, the meeting shall be convened by the Divisional Commissioner or any officer authorized in this behalf by the State Government. (4) In the case a Municipal Council or a Nagar Panchayat, the meeting shall be convened by the Deputy Commissioner or any officer authorized in this behalf by the State Government.

(1) The municipality shall meet at least once in every month for the transaction of its business. (2) The Mayor or Chairperson, as the case may be, may whenever he thinks fit, and shall, upon a requisition in writing by not less than one-fifth of the Councillors, convene a meeting of the municipality.

A list of business to be transacted at every meeting of the municipality, except at an adjourned meeting, shall be sent to the registered address of each councillor at least seventy-two hours before the time fixed for such meeting, and no business shall be brought before, or transacted at, any meeting other than the business of which notice has been so given. Explanation. - For the purposes of this section, "registered address" shall be the address for the time being entered in the register of addresses of councillors to be maintained by the Municipal Secretary.

(76) "Owner" includes the person for the time being receiving rent of any land or building or of any part of any land or building, whether on his own account or as an agent or trust for any person or society or for any religious or charitable purpose or as a receiver who would receive such rent if the land or the building or of any part of the land or the building were let to a tenant; and also includes with reference to any animal, vessel or boat etc. who for the time being is in the change of such object. Any emergent business may be brought before, and transacted in the meeting with the permission of the Mayor or Chairperson: Provided that any councillor may send or deliver to the Municipal Secretary notice of any resolution so as to reach him at least forty-eight hours before the time fixed for the meeting, and the Municipal Secretary shall, with all possible means, take steps to circulate such resolution to every councillor in such manner as he may think fit: Provided further that no business, which has no relevance to the municipality, shall be brought before the municipality.

(77) "Platform" means any structure which is placed on or covers or projects over any street or any open drain and includes balconies or other extension of buildings projecting at any height over such street or drain; (1) The quorum necessary for the transaction of business at a meeting of the municipality shall be one-fifth of the total number of elected councillors. (2) If at any time during a meeting of the municipality there is no quorum, it shall be the duty of the person presiding over such meeting either to adjourn the meeting or to suspend the meeting until there is a quorum. (3) Where a meeting has been adjourned under sub-section (2), the business which would have been brought before such meeting and brought before, it may be transacted at the adjourned meeting, and no quorum shall be necessary for such adjourned meeting. (4) All matters required to be decided at a meeting of the municipality shall, save as otherwise provided in this Act, be determined by a majority of votes of the councillors present and voting. (5) The voting shall be by show of hands, provided that the municipality may, subject to such regulations as may be made by it, resolve that any question, or class of questions, shall be decided by secret ballot. (6) At any meeting of the municipality, where a poll is taken on a resolution before it, the votes of all the councillors present, and desire to vote shall be taken under the direction of the presiding officer of such meeting, who shall declare such resolution to have been carried or lost, as the case may be, in accordance with the result of such poll. (7) At any meeting of the municipality, unless a poll is demanded by at least one-tenth of the councillors present, a declaration by the presiding officer of such meeting to the effect that a resolution has been carried or lost in such meeting, and an entry to that effect in the minutes of the proceedings of such meeting shall, for the purposes of this Act, be conclusive evidence of the fact that such resolution has been carried or lost, as the case may be.

(78) "Population" means the population as ascertained at the last preceding census of which the relevant figures have been published; (1) The Mayor or Chairperson shall preside at every meeting of the municipality, and in his absence, the Deputy Mayor or Vice-Chairperson shall preside the meeting. (2) If both Mayor or Chairperson and Deputy Mayor or Vice-Chairperson are absent; and if there is quorum one of the councilors present may be chosen to preside over the meeting. (3) The Mayor or Chairperson, or the person presiding over a meeting of the municipality, shall have, and may exercise, a casting vote in all cases of equality of votes,

(79) "Premises” means any land or building / land or part of a building or any hut or part of a hut, and includes -(a) the garden, ground and outhouses, if any, appertaining thereto, and(b) any fittings or fixtures affixed to a building or part of a building or land or hut or part of a hut for the more beneficial enjoyment thereof; (1) The presiding officer of a meeting of the municipality shall preserve order thereat and shall have all the powers necessary for the purpose of preserving such order. (2) The presiding officer of a meeting may direct any councillor, whose conduct is, in his opinion, grossly disorderly, to withdraw immediately from the meeting, and every councillor so directed shall do so forthwith and shall absent himself during the remainder of the meeting. (1) The presiding officer of a meeting of the municipality shall preserve order thereat and shall have all the powers necessary for the purpose of preserving such order. (2) The presiding officer of a meeting may direct any councillor, whose conduct is, in his opinion, grossly disorderly, to withdraw immediately from the meeting, and every councillor so directed shall do so forthwith and shall absent himself during the remainder of the meeting. (3) If any councillor is ordered to withdraw a second time, the presiding officer may warn such councillor of the action that may be taken under this sub-section, and may thereafter, if necessary, suspend such councillor from attending the meetings of the municipality for any period not exceeding sixty days, and the councillor so suspended shall absent himself accordingly: Provided that the Mayor or Chairperson may at any time decide that such suspension be terminated: Provided further that a councillor shall not, so long as he is debarred from attending any meeting of the municipality, attend any meeting of any committee of the municipality, (4) In the case of grave disorder arising in a meeting and disobedience of orders of presiding officer, by the councillors, the presiding officer may, if he thinks necessary so to do, adjourn the meeting to a date specified by him.

(80) "Prescribed" means prescribed by rules made by the Government under this Act; (1) If a councillor has any pecuniary interest, direct or indirect, in any contract or proposed contract with or without employment, or other matter concerning the municipality, and is present at any meeting of the municipality or of a committee thereof at which such contract or employment or other matter is subject of consideration, he shall, as soon as practicable after the commencement of such meeting, disclose the fact regarding such contract or employment or other matter, and shall not take part in the consideration or discussion of, or vote on, any question with respect to such contract or employment or other matter: Provided that the provisions of this section shall not apply to a councillor for having interest as a tax-payer or inhabitant of the municipal area or consumer of water or having an interest in any matter relating to any civic service to the public. (2) For the purpose of this section, a councillor shall be deemed to have an indirect pecuniary interest in a contract or employment or other matter, if he or his nominee is a member of any company or other body with which the contract is made or is proposed to be made or which has a direct pecuniary interest in the employment or other matter under consideration, or if he is a partner in a firm with which, or is in employment under a person with whom, the contract is made or is proposed to be made, or if such firm or person has a direct pecuniary interest in the employment or other matter under consideration: Provided that: - (a) the provisions of this sub-section shall not apply to a councillor who is a member of, or is in employment under, any public institution or organization under any law for the time being in force, and (b) a councillor shall not, by reason of his membership of a company or other body, be treated as having any pecuniary interest in such company or other body if he has no beneficial interest in any share or stock of such company or other body. (3) In the case of a councillor who is married and lives with his spouse, the interest of one shall be deemed, for the purposes of this section, to be the interest of the other. Explanation -For the purposes of this section and section 81, "company" shall mean any body corporate, and shall include a firm or other association of individuals.

(81) "Public place" means a space, not being private property, which is open to the use or enjoyment of the public whether such space is vested in the municipality or not; (1) A councillor may give to the Municipal Secretary a notice to the effect that he or his spouse is a member of a company or is a partner in a firm or is in the employment under a person, and if any contract is made or is proposed to be made with such company or firm or person, such notice shall, unless and until it is withdrawn, be deemed to be a sufficient disclosure of his interest in such contract or proposed contract which may be the subject of consideration at a meeting of the municipality after the date of the notice. (2) The Municipal Secretary shall record in a book, to be kept for the purpose, particulars of any disclosure made under sub-section (1) of section 80 and of any notice given under sub-section (1) of this section, and the book shall be open during office hours for the inspection of any councillor.

(82) “Public securities” means-,(a) securities of the Central Government or any State Government,(b) securities, stocks, debentures or shares, the interest whereon has been guaranteed by the Central or the State Government,(c) debentures or other securities for money issued by or on behalf of any local authority in exercise of the powers conferred by any enactment for the time being in force in any part of India,(d) securities expressly authorized by any order which the Government makes in this behalf; The Municipal Commissioner or the Executive Officer, or any other officer of the municipality authorized by him in writing in this behalf, may attend any meeting of the municipality or of any committees.

(83) "Public Service Commission" means the Public Service Commission for the State of Jharkhand constituted under Article 315 of the Constitution of India; (1) A councillor may, subject to the provisions of sub-section (2), ask the Council or/and Standing Committee questions on any matter relating to the administration of the municipality or municipal governance, and all such questions shall be addressed to the Standing Committee and shall be answered either by the Mayor or Chairperson or by any other member of the Standing Committee. (2) The right to ask a question shall be governed by the following conditions, namely:- (a) not less than seven working days' notice, in writing, specifying the question shall be given to the Municipal Secretary; (b) no question shall – (i) bring in any name or statement not strictly necessary to make the question intelligible, (ii) contain arguments, ironical expressions, imputations, epithets or defamatory statements, (iii) ask for an expression of opinion or the solution of a hypothetical proposition, (iv) ask as to the character or conduct of any person except in his official or public capacity, (v) relate to a matter which is not primarily the concern of the municipality, (vi) make or imply a charge of a personal character, (vii) raise questions of policy too large to be dealt with within the limits of an answer to a question, (viii) repeat in substance questions already answered or to which an answer has been refused, (ix) ask for information on trivial matters, (x) ask for information on matters of past history, (xi) ask for information set forth in accessible documents or in ordinary works of reference, (xii) raise matters under the control of bodies or, persons not primarily responsible to the municipality, or (xiii) ask for any information on any matter which is under adjudication by a court of law. (3) The presiding officer shall disallow any question, which is, in his opinion, in contravention of the provisions of sub-section (2). (4) If any doubt arises whether any question is or is not in contravention of the provisions of sub-section (2), the matter shall be decided by the presiding officer, whose decision shall be final. (5) The Mayor or Chairperson or any member of the Standing Committee shall not be bound to answer a question seeking information which has been communicated to him or to the Standing Committee in confidence or if, in his opinion, it cannot be answered in public interest. (6) Unless otherwise directed by the presiding officer of the meeting, every question shall be answered at a meeting of the municipality.

(84) "Public street" means any street, road, lane, gully, alley, passage, pathway, square or courtyard, whether a thoroughfare or not, over which the public have a right of way, and includes -(a) the access or approach to a public ferry,(b) the roadway over any public bridge or causeway,(c) the footpath attached to any such street, public bridge or causeway,(d) the passage connecting to public streets, and(e) the drains attached to any such street, public bridge or causeway, and, where there is no drain attached to any such street, shall be deemed to include also, unless the contrary is shown, all land upto the boundary wall, hedge or pillar of the premises, if any, abutting on the street, or, where a street alignment has been fixed, upto such alignment; (1) Any councillor may give notice of raising discussion on a matter of urgent public importance to the Municipal Secretary, stating clearly the matter to be raised. (2) Such notice, supported by the signatures of at least two other councillors, shall reach the Municipal Secretary at least twenty four hours before the date on which such discussion is sought, and the Municipal Secretary shall immediately place it before the Mayor or Chairperson, as the case may be, and circulate the notice among the councillors in such manner as he may think fit. (3) The Mayor or Chairperson may admit for discussion such notice as may appear to him to be of sufficient public importance and allow such time for discussion as he may consider appropriate. (4) There shall be no formal resolution or voting on such discussion.

(85) "Regulations" means the regulations made by a municipality under this Act; (1) Any councillor may ask for a statement from the Standing Committee on an urgent matter relating to the administration of the municipality by giving notice to the Municipal Secretary at least one hour before the commencement of the meeting of the municipality on any day. (2) The Mayor or Chairperson or a member of the Standing Committee may either make a brief statement on the same day or fix a date for making such statement. (3) Not more than two such matters shall be raised at a meeting and, in the event of more than two matters being raised priority shall be given to the matters which are, in the opinion of the Mayor or Chairperson, more urgent and important. (4) There shall be no debate on such statement at the time it is made.

(86) "Rules" means the rules made by the Government under this Act; Minutes of each meeting of the municipality and of the committees of the municipality recording therein the names of the councillors present at such meeting and the proceedings of each such meeting shall be drawn up and entered in a book to be kept for that purpose by the Municipal Secretary and they shall be laid before the next meeting of the municipality or of the committees, as the case may be, and they shall be signed at such meeting by the presiding officer thereof.

(87) “Scheduled Caste” means such castes, races or tribes or parts of or groups within such castes, races or tribes as are notified to be Scheduled Castes under Article 341 of the Constitution of India; Minutes of the proceedings of each meeting of the municipality and of the committees after they are signed by the presiding officer shall be circulated to all the councillors within seven days and shall, at all reasonable times, be available at the office of the municipality for inspection by any councillor, free of cost, and by any other person on payment of such fee as the municipality may determine.

(88) “Scheduled Tribes” means such tribes, or tribal communities or parts of or groups within such tribes or tribal communities as are notified to be Scheduled Tribes under Article 342 of the Constitution of India; (1) The Municipal Secretary shall forward to the State Government a copy of the minutes of the proceedings of each meeting of the municipality or of the committees within seven days after they are signed. (2) The State Government may, in any case, call for a copy or copies of all or any of the papers laid before the municipality or any committee of the municipality and, thereupon, the Municipal Secretary shall forward to the State Government a copy or copies of such paper or papers.

(89) "Sewage" means night soil and other contents of privies, urinals, cesspools or drains, and includes trade effluents and discharges from manufactories of all kinds; The State Government may, by rules, provide for such matters, not provided in this Act, relating to the conduct of business of the municipality or of its committees, as it may deem necessary.

(90) “Slaughter house” means any place used for the slaughter of cattle, sheep, goats, kids or pigs for the purpose of selling the flesh thereof as meat; (1) No act or proceeding of the municipality or of any committee of the municipality shall be called in question merely on the ground of – (a) the existence of any vacancy in, or any defect, initial or subsequent, in the constitution of, the municipality or any committee of the municipality, or (b) any councillor having voted or taken part in any proceeding in contravention of any of the provisions of the Act; or (c) any defect or irregularity not affecting the merit of any case to which such defect or irregularity relates. (2) Every meeting of the municipality or any committee of the municipality, the minutes of the proceedings of which have been duly signed under section 86, shall be deemed to have been duly convened and to be free from any defect or irregularity.