Right to attend meetings of Council and its committees, etc., and right of members to ask questions in relation to the municipal government of New Delhi

(1) Any municipal officer authorised by the Chairperson in this behalf may attend, speak in, or otherwise take part in the proceedings of, any meeting of the Council or any of its Committees, but none of the persons specified herein shall by virtue of this sub-section be entitled to vote in any such meeting. (2) A member may, subject to the provisions of sub-section (3), ask the Chairperson questions on any matter relating to the municipal government of New Delhi or the administration of this Act in any meeting of the Council. (3) The right to ask a question shall be governed by the following conditions, namely:— (a) not less than seven clear days’ notice in writing specifying the question shall be given to the Secretary; (b) no question shall— (i) bring in any name or statement not strictly necessary to make the question intelligible, (ii) contain argument, 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 Council, (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) ordinarily 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 Council, (xiii) ask for any information on matter which is under adjudication by a court of law. (4) The Chairperson shall not be bound to answer a question if it asks for information which has been communicated to him in confidence or if in the opinion of the Chairperson it cannot be answered without prejudice to public interest or the interest of the Council. (5) The Council may make regulations for the transaction of business at its meetings: Provided that the time, place and procedure for the first meeting after the constitution of the Council under section 4 shall be determined by the Administrator.