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Judgment
D.N. Patel, J.—The present petitioner, by way of filing this petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India challenges the impugned notification issued by the respondent No. 5 dated 1st March, 2004, pertaining to the elections of Agricultural Produce Market Committee.
Learned counsel appearing for the petitioner has submitted that the respondent No. 5 has issued notification dated 1st March, 2004, whereby, the election of the Agricultural Produce Market Committee has been postponed in the midst of the election process. It is submitted that once election process has been started, as per the settled principle of law initiated by the Hon''ble Supreme Court, the same cannot be adjourned or suspended. Therefore, the action of the respondent No. 5 deserves to be quashed and set aside.
It is also contended by the learned advocate for the petitioner that as per Section 11(3) of the said Act, only the Director, Agricultural and Co-operation Department has power to postpone the election. The reasons advanced by the respondent No. 5 has postponed the election of the Agricultural Produce Market Committee, are not legal and they are arbitrary and violative of Article 14 of the Constitution of India. It is further averred by the petitioner that the election of Agricultural Produce Market Committee is a very small election in comparison with the election of Parliament, and most of the stages of elections of Agricultural Produce Market Committee, Palanpur, District Banaskantha have been over. Therefore, it is the duty of the State of Gujarat to see that the elections process should be over because the term of the old Committee has, already, been expired. The total number of voters is very few here as under :-
Agriculturist 664 Traders 1385 Marketing Co-operative Societies 25 Thus the officer of the respondent, required for the aforesaid elections are very few, as the total number of the voters are very less and figure and, therefore, a general order issued on 1st March, 2004 by the respondent authority, whereby, in the midst of the elections process of Agricultural Produce Market Committee, Palanpur, District Banaskantha, is in latent violation of the said Act.
Learned advocate appearing for the respondents has, mainly, submitted that the Election Commission of India has declared the election programme for the general election to the Lok Sabha and the elections in Gujarat State for the members of the Lok Sabha are to be held on 20th April, 2004. As per Part-IV of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, the administrative machinery for the conduct of elections are to be supplied by the State of Gujarat as observers, returning officers, presiding officers, polling officers etc. and u/s 20-A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, the said officers are deemed to be on deputation to - in election commission for the period commencing on and from the date of notification calling for such election and ending with the date of declaration of the result of such election and, therefore, the officers shall during that period be subject to the controls superintendence and direction of the election commission and, therefore, the offices of Chief Electoral Officer, Gujarat State has issued a circular dated 29th February, 2004. Under Clause-12 of the said circular that the conduct of elections is an enormous task and that it is necessary to get the co-operation from the entire administrative machinery of the State Government for the election work and, therefore, all the Class - I to IV of Panchayat, Local Autonomous Authorities, Boards, Corporations shall provide services for the process of election. In view of this fact, the impugned notification dated 1st March, 2004 has been issued by the respondent No. 5 whereby the elections of all the Agricultural Produce Market Committee i.e. 30 Agricultural Produce Market Committees have been suspended. The list of 30 Agricultural Produce Market Committees has been referred as Annexure I and II to the aforesaid notification, dated 1st March, 2004. Thus, the petitioner is not a singled out and has not been given separate treatment. It''s a general and the policy decision taken by the State of Gujarat in exercising the powers conferred upon the State under Article 162 of the Constitution of India, whereby, all the elections of Lok Sabha, the elections of Agricultural Produce Market Committees have been suspended only for a limited period.
Looking to the facts and circumstances of the case and especially Section 11 of the said Act, the State of Gujarat has power to suspend the elections. There is no arbitrariness in suspending the elections of the Agricultural Market Produce Committee. In view of the general elections of the members of the Parliament and keeping in mind the provisions of Representation of the People Act, more particularly Section 11 of the Representation of the People Act which is reproduced hereinbelow.
"11. Constitution of market committee - (1) Every market committee shall consist of the following members, namely :-
(i) eight agriculturists who shall be elected by members of managing committees of co-operative societies (other than co-operative marketing societies) dispensing agricultural credit in the market area;
(ii) four members to be elected in the prescribed manner from amongst themselves by the traders holding general licenses;
(iii) two representatives of the Co-operative marketing societies situate in the market area and holding general licenses, to be elected from amongst the members (other than nominal, associate or sympathiser members) of such societies by the members of the managing committees of such societies:
Provided that where the number of co-operative marketing societies so situate does not exceed two, only one representative shall be so elected;
(iv) one member to be mentioned by the local authority (other than the market committee) within whose jurisdiction the principal market yard is situated from amongst its councillors or, as the case may be, members who do not hold any general licence:
Provided that where under the law applicable to the local authority its councillors or members have vacated office and any person or administrator has been appointed to exercise the power and perform the functions of the local authority, such person or, as the case may be, administrator shall nominate a member under this paragraph from amongst persons qualified to be councillors or members of the local authority and not holding a general licence;
(v) two members to be nominated by the State Government:
Provided that when a market committee is constituted for the first time all the members thereof shall be persons nominated by the State Government and shall hold office for a period of two years from the date of their nomination;
(2)(a) If for any reason in the case of a market committee no election is held, the Director shall report the fact to the State Government and with the previous approval of the State Government nominate on the market committee members of the respective class specified in sub-section (1) from amongst persons qualified to be elected as members of the respective class;
(b) The persons so nominated shall hold office for such period not exceeding two years as the Director may, with the approval of the State Government determine.
(3) If for any reason in the case of a market committee an election does not result in the return of the required number of qualified persons to take office, the Director, after taking into consideration the views of the members already elected shall as soon as possible nominated from amongst person qualified to be elected such number as is necessary to make up the required numbers and the persons so nominated shall be deemed to have been duly elected as members of the market committee.
(4)(a) The terms of office of a market committee shall, save as otherwise provided in this Act, be four years from the date of its first general meeting.
[(aa) The State Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette and for reasons to be recorded therein, extend the said term for a period not exceeding one year in the aggregate.]
(b) Save as otherwise provided in this Act, the term of office of the members of the market committee shall be co-extensive with the term of the market committee and also shall be deemed to extend to and expire with the day immediately before the [date of the appointment of an Administrator under clause (a) of sub-section (5)].
[(5)(a) Where the term of office of a market committee has expired, the State Government shall, by order published in the Official Gazettee, direct that -
(i) such person as may be appointed by the State Government from time to time shall be the Administrator to manage the affairs of the market committee, during the period beginning with the date specified in the order and ending on the day immediately preceding the date of the first general meeting of the market committee as reconstituted on the expiry of the term of the market committee (hereinafter in this sub-section referred to as "the said period");]
(ii) the market committee shall be reconstituted within such period not exceeding one year in the aggregate as may be specified in the order.
(b) During the said period, all powers, functions and duties of the market committee under this Act shall be exercised and performed by the Administrator.
(c) The Administrator may by an order in writing delegate any of the powers, functions and duties to be exercised or performed by him under clause (b) to any officer for the time being employed by the market committee.
(d) The Administrator shall receive such remuneration from the market committee Fund as the State Government may from time to time by general or special order determine.]
Looking to the urgency and the needs of the officers for the elections of Parliament, as envisaged in affidavit-in-reply, impugned decision has been taken for all the elections of Agricultural Produce Market Committees of the Gujarat State and the same was postponed, till 21st May, 2004, from the stage at which the same has been suspended. Thus, the petitioner has not been singled out, neither a separate treatment has been given to the petitioner. The impugned notification is general in nature. It is not violative under Article 14 of the Constitution of India. Neither the said restriction which is imposed by the impugned notification is permanent in nature as it has been only upto only 25th May, 2004. It is not the contention of the petitioner that even thereafter there may not be elections of the Agricultural Produce Market Committee.
In view of the aforesaid discussion, there is no merits in this petition. This petition, therefore, fails and it is dismissed. Notice is discharged. No costs.
In view of the above order, Civil Application No. 2024 of 2004 does not survive and the same is disposed of, accordingly.