Chapter V CONSTITUTION OF THE CITY CORPORATION

(1) As soon as may be, after the commencement of this Act, there shall be established for the purposes of this Act, the City Corporations as under section 5.

1. (2) Save as otherwise provided in this Act or any other law for the time being in force, when an area is excluded from the Greater Bengaluru Area,-
   • (i) the rights and liabilities of the City Corporation in such area shall vest in the Government; and
   • (ii) Government shall, after consulting the City Corporation, determine what portion of the City Corporation fund and other property of the City Corporation shall vest in the Government for the benefit of the inhabitants of such local area and how the liabilities of the City Corporation shall be apportioned between the City Corporation and the Government.
2. (3) When a local area is included in the Greater Bengaluru Area, the Government shall decide the City Corporation to which the said local area shall

be a part of. However, as far as possible an Assembly Constituency shall not be divided into two or more City Corporations while adding or removing any area. The provisions of this Act and all taxes, notifications, rules, bye-laws, orders, directions and powers, levied, issued, made or conferred under this Act or any other law applicable to the Greater Bengaluru Area shall apply to the said area from the date of inclusion of such area within the Greater Bengaluru Area.

1. (4) Each City Corporation shall have perpetual succession and a common seal with power, subject to the provisions of this Act, to acquire, hold and dispose of property and may by the said name sue and be sued.
2. (5) Each City Corporation in the Greater Bengaluru Area shall be suitably name with a prefix ‘Bengaluru’.

It shall be the duty of each City Corporation to cause at its own cost to be erected or setup and there after maintain at its own cost substantial boundary marks of such description and in such position as shall be approved by the Deputy Commissioner of the revenue district having jurisdiction, defining the limits or the altered limits, as the case may be, of the City which is subject to its authority: Provided that in case of any dispute in this regard, the Government shall decide the same which shall be final.

The City Corporations, shall have a term of five years duration from the date of its first meeting, unless dissolved earlier.

(1) For the purposes of election of councillors, each City Corporation shall be divided in to wards on the recommendation of the Delimitation Commission, in such manner that,-

1. (a) the population of each of the wards within the City Corporation in the Greater Bengaluru Area shall, as far as practicable, be the same; and
2. (b) Wards shall be divided within the constituency of a member of Legislative Assembly and no wards shall be spread over to multiple constituencies. Explanation: For the purpose of this section, ‘population’ means the population of the City published as per the relevant figures of the preceding census.

1. (2) The Government shall constitute a delimitation commission consisting of such number of persons as may be prescribed, to recommend to the Government regarding the manner of division of wards.
2. (3) The Government shall by order determine,-
   • (a) the wards into which each of the City Corporations, for the purpose of its elections, be divided: Provided that the number of wards in each City Corporation shall not be more than one hundred and fifty;
   • (b) the extent of each ward; and
   • (c) seats shall be reserved in a City Corporation,-
     • (i) for the Scheduled Castes; and
     • (ii) for the Scheduled Tribes.
       • • and the number of seats so reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes shall bear as nearly as may be, the same proportion to the total number of seats to be filled by direct election in each City Corporation as the population of the Scheduled Castes and of the Scheduled Tribes, respectively, in the said City Corporation bears to the total population of that Corporation.
   • (d) Such number of seats which shall as nearly as may be, one third of the total number of seats to be filled by direct election in each City Corporation shall be reserved for persons belonging to the Backward Classes. Provided that, out of the seats reserved under this sub-section, eighty percent of the total number of such seats shall be reserved for the persons falling under category "A" and the remaining twenty percent of the seats shall be reserved for the persons falling under category "B". Provided further that, if no person falling under category "A" is available, the seats reserved for that category shall also be filled by the persons falling under category "B" and vice-versa. Provided also that then number of seats so reserved for the Backward Classes under this sub-section shall be so determined, that the total number of seats reserved for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and the Backward Classes under this sub-section shall not exceed fifty percent of the total number of seats in the City Corporation. In case, as per the number of seats reserved for the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes and the Backward Classes together exceeds fifty percent of the total number of directly elected seats in the City Corporation, then the seats for the Backward Classes shall be proportionately reduced to ensure that the total reserved seats do not exceed fifty percent.
3. (4) Not more than fifty percent of the seats reserved for each category of persons belonging to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes as well as the non-reserved seats to be filled by direct election in a City Corporation, shall be reserved for women: Provided that, the seats reserved in sub-sections (3) and (4) shall be allotted by rotations to different wards of the elections of the City Corporation.
4. (5) No de-limitation of wards or change of wards for the purpose of reservation shall be made in the City Corporation after its constitution, except for the purpose of general election to that City Corporation and no such de- limitation or change of wards shall, in any manner, affect the existing City Corporation. 1[Provided that, de-limitation shall be made for the newly included local area within a period of three months. Provided further that, new de-limitation process shall be conducted after every census, before next General election to the City Corporation, if census results are available at least six months before the next General election to the City Corporation.]
5. (6) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, where two thirds of the total number of Councillors required to be elected have been elected, the City Corporation shall be deemed to have been duly constituted under this Act.

¹ Inserted by Act 01 of 2026 w.e.f. 07.01.2026

The City Corporation shall consist of,-

1. (a) Such number of elected Councillors representing each ward determined by the Government;
2. (b) the Government shall nominate such members from the residents of the City of Bengaluru and such members shall not exceed ten percent of the Councillors:-
   • (i) who are persons having special knowledge and experience in municipal administration or matters relating to health, town planning or education; or
   • (ii) who are social workers: Provided that, the persons referred to in clause (b) shall not have right to vote in the meetings of the City Corporation.
3. (c) the Members of the House of people whose constituencies are within the area of the City Corporation and the Members of the Council of States who are registered as voters in the City Corporation; and
4. (d) the Members of Legislative Assembly whose constituencies are within the area of the City Corporation and the Members of Legislative Council who are registered as voters in the City Corporation. 1[Provided that, any member representing the Local area included as per section 6 of the Act to the City Corporation shall not be the member of that City Corporation.]

¹ Inserted by Act 01 of 2026 w.e.f. 07.01.2026

(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Oaths Act, 1969 (Central Act 44 of 1969) every person who is elected as a Councillor shall, before taking his seat, make at a meeting of the City Corporation, an oath or affirmation of his allegiance to the Constitution in the following form namely:- "I.A.B., having been elected a councillor of this City Corporation do swear in the name of God / solemnly affirm that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India, and that I will faithfully discharge the duty upon which I am about to enter". (2) Any person who having been elected to be a councillor fails to make, within three months of the date on which his term of office commences or at one of the first three meetings held after the said date, whichever is later the oath or affirmation laid down in subsection(1)shall cease to hold his office and his seat shall be deemed to have become vacant. (3) Any person who has been elected to be a Councillor shall not take his seat at a meeting of the City Corporation or do any act as such Councillor unless he has made the oath or affirmation as laid down in sub-section (1). (4) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (3), a Mayor or Deputy Mayor or the chairman or a member of a standing-committee, who has not made the oath or affirmation as a Councillor shall not be entitled to act as such Mayor, Deputy Mayor, Chairman or member.

1. (2) Any person who having been elected to be a councillor fails to make,

oath or affirmation laid down in subsection(1)shall cease to hold his office and his seat shall be deemed to have become vacant.

1. (3) Any person who has been elected to be a Councillor shall not take his seat at a meeting of the City Corporation or do any act as such Councillor unless he has made the oath or affirmation as laid down in sub-section (1).
2. (4) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (3), a Mayor or Deputy Mayor or the chairman or a member of a standing-committee, who has not made the oath or affirmation as a Councillor shall not be entitled to act as such Mayor, Deputy Mayor, Chairman or member.

Every Councillor shall, not later than one month after the commencement of his term of office and by the end of June of each succeeding year, file with the Mayor a declaration of all assets owned by him and any member of his family. Such declaration shall form part of the City Corporation records.

Term of office of Councillors.- (1) Save as otherwise provided in this Act, the term of office of Councillors,-

1. (i) directly elected at a general election shall be five years;
2. (ii) nominated by the Government shall, subject to the pleasure of the Government, be, co-extensive with the term of the councillors, five years.

1. (2) The term of office of the Councillors shall commence on the date appointed for the first meeting of the City Corporation.
2. (3) If any casual vacancy occurs it shall be filled, as soon as may be, by the election of a person thereto. The person so elected shall hold office only so long as the person in whose place he is elected would have held had the vacancy not occurred: Provided that, no election to fill a casual vacancy shall be held if the vacancy occurs within six months before the expiry by efflux of time of the term of office of the Councillors. 1[(4) An election shall be conducted for the newly included local area after de-limitation, not later than six months from the date of inclusion of that area. The person so elected shall hold office only so long as the remaining period of that City Corporation to which that new local area is included: Provided that no election shall be conducted for the newly included local area if the term of office of the Councillors of that City Corporation expires within a period of six months.] CHAPTER-VI ELECTIONS

¹ Inserted by Act 01 of 2026 w.e.f. 07.01.2026