15. General disqualification for membership of Gram Panchayat.
(1)A person shall be disqualified for being chosen as and for being a member of a Panchayat, if-(a)he is so dis-qualified by or under any law for the time being in force for the purpose of elections to the legislature of the State concerned :Provided that no person shall be dis-qualified only on ground that he is less than 25 years of age, if he has attained the age of 21 years;(b)he is so disqualified by or under any law by the legislature of the State ;(c)if he is in the service of, or holds any office of profit under the Central Government or any State Government or Autonomous District Council or any Zilla Parishad or any Panchayat Samiti or a Gram Panchayat ;(d)if he has, directly or indirectly, by himself or by his partner or employee, any share or interest in any contract or employment with, by or on behalf of the Gram Panchayat concerned :Provided that notwithstanding anything contained in this clause no person shall be deemed to be disqualified thereunder by reason only of his having a share or interest in-(i)any lease, sale or purchase of land or any agreement for the sale;(ii)any agreement for the loan of money or any security for the payment of money only; or(iii)any public company as defined in the Companies Act, 1956 which contracts with or is employed by the concerned Gram Panchayat;(e)he has been dismissed from the service of the Central or a State Government or a local authority or a co-operative society or Government company or a corporation, owned or controlled by the Central or a State Government for misconduct involving moral turpitude and five years have not elapsed from the date of such dismissal;(f)he has been adjudged by a competent court to be of unsound mind ;(g)he is an undischarged insolvent ;(h)he, being a discharged insolvent, has not obtained from the court certificate that his insolvency was caused by misfortune and without any misconduct on his part ;(i)he has been convicted of any offence punishable under Chapter IX-A of the Indian Penal Code or under Chapter-III of Part-VII of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 and five years have not elapsed from the date of the expiration of the sentence ;(j)he has been convicted by a criminal court to imprisonment for a period of more than two years for any offence other than an offence involving moral turpitude (such sentence not having been reserved or the offence pardoned) and five years have not elapsed from the date of expiration of the sentence, provided that the State Government may direct that such sentence shall not operate as a disqualification ;(k)he has been disqualified from exercising any electoral right on account of corrupt practices in connection with an election under this Act or any other Act, and six years have not elapsed from the date of such disqualification, provided that the disqualification under this clause may at any time be removed by the State Government if it thinks fit ; or(l)he has voluntarily acquired citizenship of a foreign state.(2)If a person is member of a Municipality or a District Council or a Notified Area Authority or a Zilla Parishad or a Panchayat Samiti, such person, if elected as a member of Gram Panchayat, shall resign from such office and, unless he does so, the seat to which he has been elected shall be deemed to have become vacant.(3)A person shall not be deemed to hold an office of profit under the Gram Panchayat by reason only of his being a Pradhan or Upa-pradhan or a member thereof.
