IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CWJC No.16354 of 2009 ANIL KUMAR CHOUBEY, son of Sri Onkar Nath Choubey, resident of Village & P.O.-Parmanpur, P.S.-Nawanagar, District-Buxar, Bihar. ……..Petitioner Versus 1. The State Of Bihar through the Principal Secretary, Panchayat Raj Department, Bihar, Patna. 2. The District Magistrate, Patna. 3. The District Magistrate, Buxar 4. The Block Development Officer, Nawanagar, District-Buxar. ………Respondents. ----------- 02. 08.12.2009 By this writ application the petitioner who is the elected Mukhiya of village Panchayat Parmanpur in the District of Buxar challenges the order of the Block Development Officer, Nawanagar dated 17.11.2009 as contained in Annexure-7. By the said order the Block Development Officer has ordered that as the petitioner is not continuing of his duties as Mukhiya, all powers, functions of Mukhiya would henceforth be performed by the Up-Mukhiya in terms of Section 17(2)(b) of the Bihar Panchayat Raj Act, 2006. Having heard the parties and with their consent the writ application is being disposed off at this stage itself. Learned counsel for the State states that a criminal case was recently instituted against the petitioner. Petitioner had been asked to show cause by the State Government under Section 18(5) of the Act as to why he should not be removed from the post of Mukhiya. It is then 2 submitted that Section 17(2)(b) stipulates that in absence of Mukhiya the power, duties and functions thereof would be performed by the Up-Mukhiya. This, considering the aforesaid fact that the Block Development Officer passed the aforesaid order. I am afraid the contention of the State can not be accepted. It must be remembered that Mukhiyas are elected heads of local self government by a democratic process. The Block Development Officer is neither the controlling Office nor a superior Officer to that of a Mukhiya. If anything, the Block Development Officer is the Executive Officer of the Gram Panchayat and has to obey the directions and orders of the Gram Panchayat. In that sense he is there to implement orders of the Gram Panchayat and he can not do the reverse. Patently he lacks any authority which he has chosen to exercise. The authority to remove the Mukhiya is only three fold. First by virtue of an election petition where his election could be challenged and invalidated by Court of competent jurisdiction. Secondly by a vote of no confidence in the Panchayat and the third is by the State Government in contingency as provided under Section 18(5) of the Act. There is no other provision much less any provision empowering the Block Development Officer to do what he did. The action of the Block Development Officer is wholly 3 without jurisdiction. He is not permitted to interfere in the working of the Panchayat. The responsibility lies on the Panchayat or on the State Government as the case may be. Thus the order of the Block Development Officer being wholly without jurisdiction is quashed and set aside. He is directed not to interfere in the working of the Panchayat except by authority of law. The writ application is thus allowed. Shageer (Navaniti Prasad Singh, J)