Section 157 in The Maharashtra Village Panchayats Act, 1959
157. Effect of conversion of municipality into Panchayat.
- When any local area ceases to be a municipal district by virtue of, or when the whole area comprised in a municipality is withdrawn from, or when any municipality ceases to be a municipality by virtue of, any municipal law, and such area is [specified] [The word was substituted for the word 'declared' by Maharashtra 21 of 1994, Section 28.] to be a village under section 4 with effect from the date on which such local area is so [specified] [The word was substituted for the word 'declared' by Maharashtra 21 of 1994, Section 28.] to be a village (in this section referred to as "the said date"), the following consequences shall notwithstanding anything in the relevant municipal law, ensue, that is to say-(a)the municipality of such local shall cease to exist;(b)there shall notwithstanding anything contained in any law for the time being in force, be constituted for the village an interim Panchayat consisting of persons vacating office as councillors of the municipality or members of the Committee or members of a Town Committee of such municipality and the President and Vice-President of the Municipality or as the case may be of a Committee or Town Committee shall, respectively, be deemed to be the Sarpanch and Upa-Sarpanch of the interim Panchayat;(c)the unexpended balance of the municipal fund and property including arrears of rates, taxes and fees, belonging to the municipality, and all rights and powers, which prior to such notification, vested in the municipality shall, subject to all charges and liabilities affecting the same, vest in the interim Panchayat as the village fund until the new Panchayat is constituted in pursuance of the provision of sub-section (1) of section 158;(d)any appointment, notification, notice, tax, order, scheme, licence, permission, rule, bye-law or form made, issued, imposed or granted under any municipal law immediately before the said date in respect of such local area shall continue in force and be deemed to have been made, issued, imposed or granted in respect of the village until it is superseded or modified by any other appointment, notification, notice, tax, order, scheme, licence, permission, rule, bye-law or form made, issued, imposed or granted under this Act;(e)all budget estimates, assessments, assessment lists, valuation or measurements made or authenticated under any of the municipal laws immediately before the said date in respect of such local area shall be deemed to have been made or authenticated under this Act;(f)all debts and obligations incurred and all contracts made by or on behalf of the municipality immediately before the said date and subsisting on the said date shall be deemed to have been incurred and made by the interim Panchayat in exercise of the powers conferred on it by or under this Act;(g)all officers and servants in the employ of the municipality immediately before the said date shall be officers and servants of the interim Panchayat under this Act and shall, until other provision is made in accordance with the provisions of this Act, receive salaries and allowances and be subject to the conditions of service to which they were entitled or subject on such date:Provided that, it shall be competent to the interim Panchayat subject however, to the previous sanction of the State Government to discontinue the service of any officer or servant who, in its opinion, is not necessary or suitable to the requirements of the service of the interim Panchayat, after giving such officer or servant such notice as is required to be given by the terms of his employment and every officer or servant whose services are discontinued shall be entitled to such leave, pension, provident fund and gratuity as he would have been entitled to take receive on being invalided out of service as if the municipality in the employ of which he was, had not ceased to exist;(h)all proceedings pending at the said date before the municipality shall be deemed to be transferred to and continued by, the interim Panchayat;(i)all appeals pending at the said date before the municipality shall, so far as may be practicable, be disposed of as if such local area had been included in the village when they were filed;(j)all prosecutions instituted by or on behalf of the municipality and all suits or other legal proceedings instituted by or against such municipality or any officer of such municipality pending at the said date shall be constituted by or against the interim Panchayat as if such local area had been included in the village when such prosecutions, suits or proceedings were instituted.
