Case Note & Summary
The petitioner, Deepak Umakant Mathpati, Chairman of the Standing Committee of Latur Municipal Corporation (LMC), filed a writ petition seeking a declaration that respondent No. 4, Chandrakant Gurunath Birajdar, ceased to be a member of the Standing Committee from the date of his resignation, i.e., 28.05.2019, or alternatively from 20.06.2019, the date of acceptance. The facts reveal that respondent No. 4 tendered his resignation as a member of the Standing Committee on 28.05.2019, which was accepted by the erstwhile Mayor on 20.06.2019. Subsequently, respondent No. 4 did not attend any Standing Committee meetings from July 2019 to December 2019. On 11.12.2019, respondent No. 4 wrote a letter to the Municipal Secretary stating that he had resigned on 28.05.2019. However, on 21.12.2019, respondent No. 4 attended a Standing Committee meeting and claimed that his resignation was not effective. The petitioner argued that the resignation took effect from the date of tender, while respondent No. 4 contended that it took effect only from the date of acceptance. The court analyzed Section 5A of the Maharashtra Municipal Corporations Act, 1949, and Rule 3 of the Maharashtra Municipal Corporations (Standing Committee) Rules, 1994, which govern resignation from the Standing Committee. The court held that when a resignation is tendered unconditionally and accepted without any condition, it takes effect from the date of tender. The court reasoned that the resignation is a voluntary act, and once accepted, it relates back to the date of resignation. The court also noted that respondent No. 4's subsequent conduct of not attending meetings and writing a letter confirming his resignation indicated his intention to resign. Therefore, the court allowed the petition and declared that respondent No. 4 ceased to be a member of the Standing Committee from 28.05.2019.
Headnote
A) Municipal Law - Standing Committee - Resignation - Effective Date - Section 5A of the Maharashtra Municipal Corporations Act, 1949 and Rule 3 of the Maharashtra Municipal Corporations (Standing Committee) Rules, 1994 - The issue was whether resignation of a member of the Standing Committee takes effect from the date of tender or date of acceptance. The court held that when resignation is tendered unconditionally and accepted without any condition, it takes effect from the date of tender. The court relied on the principle that resignation is a voluntary act and once accepted, it relates back to the date of resignation. The court directed that respondent No. 4 ceased to be a member of the Standing Committee from 28.05.2019. (Paras 2-10)
Issue of Consideration
Whether the resignation of respondent No. 4 from the Standing Committee takes effect from the date of tender (28.05.2019) or from the date of acceptance (20.06.2019), and whether the respondent No. 4 ceased to be a member of the Standing Committee from the date of resignation.
Final Decision
The court allowed the petition and declared that respondent No. 4 ceased to be a member of the Standing Committee of Latur Municipal Corporation with effect from 28.05.2019.
Law Points
- Resignation takes effect from date of tender when accepted unconditionally
- Resignation from Standing Committee under Maharashtra Municipal Corporations Act
- 1949
- Section 5A of the Act
- Rule 3 of the Maharashtra Municipal Corporations (Standing Committee) Rules
- 1994
