LPA No. 1872 of 2010 [1] IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB & HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH LPA No. 1872 of 2010 Date of Decision: 04.01.2011 Kulwant Kaur ...Appellant Versus State of Punjab and others ..Respondents. CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE RANJAN GOGOI, ACTING CHIEF JUSTICE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE AUGUSTINE GEORGE MASIH 1. Whether Reporters of local papers may be allowed to see the judgment ? 2. Whether to be referred to the Reporters or not ? 3. Whether the judgment should be reported in the Digest? Present : Mr. Ashok Jindal, Advocate, for the appellant. **** RANJAN GOGOI, A.C.J.(Oral) This appeal has been filed against order dated 30.07.2010 passed by the learned Single Judge of this Court dismissing Civil Writ Petition No. 19173 of 2008 filed by the appellant. 2. The appellant was a member of Gram Panchayat Village Middu Khera, Block Lambi, Tehsil Malout, District Mukatsar, which was constituted in the year 2006. As the elections of all the Gram Panchayats in the State of Punjab were to be held in 2008, Gram Panchayat Village Middu Khera, Block Lambi, Tehsil Malout, District Mukatsar unanimously passed a resolution that it should LPA No. 1872 of 2010 [2] dissolve itself and fresh election should be held alongwith rest of the Gram Panchayats. Accordingly, a notification dated 3.6.2008 (Annexure P-5) was issued dissolving the Gram Panchayat. Thereafter, the elections were held in June, 2008. 3. The appellant who, for reasons that need not detain the Court, could not be elected to the Gram Panchayat Village Middu Khera, Block Lambi, Tehsil Malout, District Mukatsar in June, 2008, filed the writ petition, out of which this appeal has arisen, contending that dissolution of the gram panchayat was contrary to the provisions of the Act and the same was also without notice to her. Additionally, it was contended that in any event, the term of the freshly elected Gram Panchayat should be for the remainder of the duration/tenure of the earlier Gram Panchayat. Both the contentions having been rejected by the learned Single Judge, the appellant has instituted the present proceedings. 4. Learned counsel for the appellant has submitted that Section 29 of the Punjab Panchayati Raj Act, 1994 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act') contemplates all situations where a Gram Panchayat can be dissolved and the dissolution of the Gram Panchayat Village Middu Khera, Block Lambi, Tehsil Malout, District Mukatsar by the Notification dated 5.6.2008 is beyond the provisions of Section 29 of the Act. Learned counsel for the appellant has further placed reliance before the Court on the provisions contained in Section 29-A of the Act to contend that in any event the newly elected Gram Panchayat could have a tenure co-terminus with the remainder of the tenure of the previous Gram Panchayat. LPA No. 1872 of 2010 [3] 5. We fail to find any merit in either of the contentions raised by learned counsel for the appellant. In the present case, the dissolution of Gram Panchayat of Village Middu Khera, Block Lambi, Tehsil Malout, District Mukatsar is by a resolution of the Gram panchayat itself which was passed by six out of seven members. Section 29 of the Act cannot be interpreted to understand that it is exhaustive of all situations in which a Gram Panchayat can be dissolved. If majority of the members of the Gram Panchayat unanimously resolve for its dissolution, the provisions of the Act cannot act as a bar for such dissolution. 6. In so far as the second contention advanced is concerned, a perusal of the provisions of Section 29-A of the Act would reveal that the truncated tenure contemplated by the said provision is to operate only in a situation specified in Section 29-A of the Act. The present is not a case where any of the said situations contemplated by Section 29-A of the Act are attracted. 7. We, therefore, find no merit in this appeal to warrant admission. Consequently, the appeal is dismissed, however, without any order as to costs. (RANJAN GOGOI) ACTING CHIEF JUSTICE (AUGUSTINE GEORGE MASIH) 04.01.2011 JUDGE 'ravinder'