Disqualification for membership of Gram Panchayat.

Disqualification for membership of Gram Panchayat. (1) A person shall be disqualified for being appointed, a Pradhan, Up-pradhan and member of a Gram Panchayat, if he - (a) is so disqualified by or under any law for the time being in force for the purposes of elections to the State Legislature : Provided that no person shall be disqualified on the ground that he is less than twenty-five years of age, if he has attained the age of twenty-one years; (b) is a salaried member of the Gram Panchayat ; (c) holds any office of profit under a State Government or the Central Government or any local authority, other than a Gram Panchayat or owned or controlled by any State Government or Central Government or any Board, bodies or corporation owned or controlled by any State Government or Central Government in which Aaganbadi workers Assistant, Secretary of Cooperative Committee and salary paid employees and working employees on honorarium under the State and Central sponsored schemes shall be included; (d) has been dismissed from the service of a State Government, the Central Government or a local authority or other Panchayat for misconduct; (e) is in arrears of any tax, fee, duty or any other dues payable by him for such period as may be prescribed, Gram Panchayat Kshettra Panchayat or Zila Panchayat or has, inspite of being required to do so failed to deliver to it any record or property belonging to it which had come into his possession by virtue of his holding any office under it; (f) he is Chairman, Vice chairman, councilor, Ward Member or Member of any Municipal body; (g) is an undischarged insolvent; (h) has been convicted of an offence involving moral turpitude; (i) has been sentenced to imprisonment for a term exceeding three months for contravention of any order made under the Essential Commodities Act, 1955; (j) has been sentenced to imprisonment for a term exceeding six months for contravention of any order made under the Essential Supplies (Temporary Powers) Act, 1946 or U.P. Control of Supplies(Temporary Powers) Act, 1947; (k) has been sentenced to imprisonment for a term exceeding three months under the U.P. Excise Act, 1910 (as applicable to the State of Uttarakhand); (l) has been convicted of an offence under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985; (m) has been convicted of an election offence; (n) has been convicted of an election offence under the U. P, Removal of Social Disabilities Act, 1947 or the Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955 (as applicable to the State of Uttarakhand); (o) has been removed from office under section 138 unless such period, as has been provided in that behalf in the said section or such lesser period as the State Government may have ordered in a particular case has elapsed : Provided that the disqualification under sub-section (5) shall cease upon payment of arrears or delivery of the record or property, as the case may be: Provided further that a disqualification under any of the sub-section referred to in the first proviso in the manner prescribed be removed by the State Government. (p) In place of women Pradhan, Up Pradhan and Member, if her husband or other family members or relative preside the meetings and discharged the duties of Gram Sabha, Gram Panchayat and declared faulty then said women and concerning person presiding meetings and discharging the duties, both shall be disqualified for forthcoming general election of three tiers of Panchayat. (q) He has not passed High School or equivalent examination from any recognized institution/ Board: Provided that in the matter of General Category women, Other Backward Classes women and Scheduled Caste/ Scheduled Tribes candidate has not passed minimum Middle/ Eight examination; (r) He has more than two living children. (s) If he or his family member or his legal heir is in unauthorized possession of Government/ Panchayati raj land or get benefit from such unauthorized possession. (t) He has embezzled Government money or recovery of government money is against him or is owed of government money. (u) He comes under the provisions of Section 8, Section 8A, Section 9, Section 9A and Section 10 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951. (2) Disqualification due to corruption- An authority competent to decide election disputes under this Act or the rules made thereunder may declare any candidate found to have committed any corrupt practice to be incapable, for any period not exceeding five years from the date of declaration, of being chosen as a member of a Gram Panchayat, or place in the gift or disposal of a Gram Panchayat. (3) Disqualification for no toilets- (a) If any person convicted by the competent court under the provisions of the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013, then he shall be disqualified for contesting Panchayat election. (b) If there is no toilets established in the house of those persons residing in the jurisdiction of concerned Panchayat, they shall be disqualified for the candidature of the Panchayat at election. (4) if the entry related to any member is removed from the territorial electoral roll or territorial constituency is partly completely included in any municipal body, the member/ office bearer shall remain on his office/ post till the cessation of tenure of the concerned Panchayat. (5) Decision on question as to disqualification- If any question arises as to whether a person has become subject to any disqualification mentioned in this Act, the question shall be referred to the prescribed authority for the decision and his decision shall, subject to the result of any appeal as may be prescribed, be final; Provided that if any disqualification for duration of the said tenure in which such rules is commencing then if omitted under any such law who is authorised for omission than the name of such person from the electoral roll of the said Gram Panchayat who is removed for such disqualification, shall be placed remain at once. (6) Punishment for failure to handover records, etc.- (a) Any person on ceasing to act as Pradhan wilfully fails, in spite of being required to do so by the prescribed authority, to handover all records, money or other property or as the case may be, to his successor or to any person authorised in this behalf by the prescribed authority, he shall be punishable with imprisonment which may extend to three years or with fine or with both. (b) Without prejudice to the provisions of sub-section (a), any such money may on a certificate issued in that behalf by the prescribed authority be recovered as arrears of land revenue. (c) Such any person who is posted on any post prior from the ending of tenure of any Gram Panchayat he shall obtain no dues certificate from the successor or designated officer necessarily. Due to not obtaining the no dues certificate, he shall not qualify for participation in the next Panchayat election. (7) Prohibition of holding more than one post simultaneously- Any person neither be candidate in the election from one or more territorial constituencies election areas in the Gram Panchayat nor he may hold one or more post in the Gram Panchayat. (8) Further bar on holding two offices simultaneously- (1) A person shall be disqualified for holding the office of Pradhan, Up-pradhan or member of the Gram Panchayat, If he is- (a) Member of the Parliament or State Legislature; or (b) The Pramukh, senior Up-pramukh, junior Up-Pramukh or member of any Kshettra Panchayat; or (c) The Chairman, Vice-Chairman or Member of any Zila Panchayat; or (d) The Chairman or Vice-chairman or member of Committee of management, of any co-operative society; or (e) The Nagar Pramukh, Up-Nagar Pramukh, member, Chairman, Vice-Chairman or member of Urban Local Bodies; or (f) The Chairman, Vice-Chairman or member of cantonment board. (2) A person, shall cease to hold the office of Pradhan, Up-Pradhan or member of the Gram Panchayat, as the case may be if subsequently he is elected to any of the offices mentioned in clauses (a) to (f) of sub-section (1) with effect from the date of such subsequent election and thereafter the post of Pradhan, Up-Pradhan or member, as the case may be, shall be deemed casual vacancy.