Meghalaya High Court
Shri Rizual Korim vs State Of Meghalaya on 27 June, 2016
Author: Sr Sen
Bench: Sr Sen
1
THE HIGH COURT OF MEGHALAYA
AT SHILLONG.
WP(C) No. 353 of 2015
Shri Rizaul Korim,
Son of Shri Abdul Aziz Sk,
R.O. Noyagaon Village,
Old Bhaitbari, Selsella,
West Garo Hills District,
Meghalaya. ... Petitioner
- Versus -
1. State of Meghalaya represented by
the Commissioner, C & RD
Department Government of
Meghalaya, Shillong.
2. Deputy Commissioner, West Garo
Hills District, Tura, Meghalaya.
3. Block Development Officer &
Programme Officer, MGNREGS,
Selsella C & RD Block, West
Garo Hills District, Meghalaya.
4. Shri Moniruzzaman Sk
President of Village Employment
Council of Noyagaon,
R.O. Nayagaon Village, Old
Bhaitbari, Selsella Block,
West Garo Hills District,
Meghalaya.
5. Shri Sofiqul Islam,
Secretary of Village Employment
Council of Noyagaon,
R.O. Noyagaon Village, Old
Bhaitbari, Selsella Block
West Garo Hills District,
Meghalaya.
6. Smti. Rasheda Bewa,
Woman member of Village
Employment Council of Noyagaon
R.O. Noyagaon Village, Old
Bhaitbari, Selsella Block,
West Garo Hills District,
Meghalaya. ... Respondents
2
BEFORE
THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE SR SEN
For the Petitioner : Mr. S. Dey, Adv.
For the Respondent s : Mr. B. Khyriem, GA
& Ms. P. Agarwal, Adv.
Date of hearing : 27.06.2016
Date of Judgment & Order : 27.06.2016
JUDGMENT AND ORDER (ORAL)
Heard Mr. S. Dey, learned counsel for the petitioner as well as Mr. B. Khyriem, learned GA for the State respondents No. 1-3 and Ms. P. Agarwal, learned counsel for the respondents No. 4 & 5.
2. The petitioner's case in a nutshell is that:
"In exercise of the powers conferred by sub section (1) of the section 4 of National Rural Employment Guarantee Act 2005 (NREGA), His Excellency the Governor of Meghalaya was pleased to make Meghalaya Employment Guarantee Scheme (MREGS) 2006 and the same was published in the Official Gazette of Meghalaya vide Notification No. 70 dated Shillong, Friday, July 28, 2006. The primary objective of the Scheme is to provide livelihood security to the households in rural districts/areas by providing not less than 100 (one hundred) days of guaranteed wage employment in every financial year to every household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled and manual work.
That any adult person of a household may on behalf of the member of the household apply to the gram sevak thought the AEC jurisdiction of which they reside, for registration of their household issuance of a job card. The application can be a printed (Form 1) or on a plain paper containing the names of the members, their age, social status and address of the household.
3AEC shall received applications with the help of sevak/community Coordinators and issue dated receipt and enter details in the EGS registration & Job Card Register (Form 2). After they shall make due enquire and issued the Job Card.
Election was conducted/held as per the direction of the Respondent No. 3 for electing the President, Secretary and woman member of the Village Employment Council of Noyagaon village. The Respondent No. 5 and 6 were elected as the Secretary and Women member of the said VEC and one Shri Zamal Uddin Sk was also elected as the President of the said VEC. The Respondent No. 3 acknowledge the said election and thereafter vide No. SEL/APPT/MGNREGS/2009-10/696 dated, Selsella the 20th October, 2011 issued an Order in pursuance of the election result conducted by the Gram Sabha of Noyagaon VEC held on 17.10.2011 and thereafter the name of Shri Zamal Uddin Sk was approved as the President, Shri Sofiqul Islam as the Secretary and Smti Rasheda Bewa as the women member of Village Employment Council of Noyagaon. After the election and approval of the names of the VEC members there were number of complaints lodged by the Job Cards holder against the Secretary of the VEC, however the Secretary in collusion with the Respondent No. 3 removed Shri Zamal Uddin Sk from the post of President and in his place Shri Moniruzzaman Sk was selected as the President of the said VEC by the Respondent No. 3 without conducting election, however numbers of jobs card holders and also the Petitioner were interested to contest the post of the President of the said VEC, the said appointment/Selection was done at the back of the Job Card holders and moreover the Job Card holders were not informed about the said appointment/selection. The Respondent No. 3 without following the norms of the said Notification selected the Respondent No. 4 as the President of VEC, of Noyagaon.
The Respondent No. 3 was pleased to issue the job card to the Petitioner vide Job Card No. MG-05-019-573- 500/31844; Family ID 31844 and the date of registration was 31.03.2011.
The act and action of the Respondent No. 4 and 5was in violation of the guide line of the said Scheme, some of the 4 Job Card holders of the said village and the Petitioner filed complaint vide letter dated 25th August 2015 to Respondent No. 3 particularly against the President and Secretary of Village Employment Council, Noyagaon village for their corrupt and illegal activities in the VEC works and it was also informed that the tenure of the VEC of Noyagaon was over, and prayed before the said Respondent to conduct election, however no action was initiated against the said Respondents.
There are many allegation in the said complaint dated th 25 August 2015, one of the allegations was that the Secretary of Noyagaon VEC is involved in a serious and continuing scandal and misuse/misappropriation of huge public money to the tune of Rs. 40, 58, 600/- by illegally replacing the elected President of the said VEC without holding any Gram Sabha meeting. Illegally drawing of wages against the job cards holder who are already death and moreover there were numbers of serious allegation leveled against the Respondent No. 4 and 5. The village Employment Council of the Noyagaon village was constituted Officially in the year 2011 and the Respondent No. 4, 5 and 6 were elected as the President, Secretary and Women member of the said VEC and thereafter without the sanction of Law the said committee is still functioning, the Respondent No. 3 did not take any initiatives to re-constitute the new VEC of Noyagaon village under Selsella block. In number of occasion the Petitioner and other job card holders approached the Respondent No. 3 to dissolve the present VEC and requested the said Respondent to conduct fresh election to constitute new VEC of Noyagaon village, however the Respondents never accepted any written application in connection with the said issue from any of the job card holders of Noyagaon village, the act and action of the State Respondents is illegal and arbitrator violate the guide lines of the Scheme. Hence this Petition".
3. The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the election was not conducted for the last five years at Noyagaon Village, Old Bhaitbari, Selsella, West Garo Hills District, Meghalaya. The last election was 5 conducted in the year 2011. He also pointed out to the notification dated 24th March 2010 published in the Official Gazette of Meghalaya pertaining to the Community and Rural Development Department, Shillong NREGA - CELL.
On perusal of the said notification dated 24th March 2010 at Clause IV it is clearly mentioned that, "against Para 7B Clause 7, the term of AEC and VEC members will be three years". If it is so, the election needs to be conducted at a gap of every three years.
4. The learned GA appearing for and on behalf of the State respondents No. 1-3 submits that the Government has no objection for fresh election.
5. The learned counsel for the respondents No. 4 and 5 also submits that the respondent No. 5 has been selected in the year 2014. So, his term is to be continued.
6. On further perusal of the notification dated 28th July 2006 published in the Official Gazette of Meghalaya pertaining to Village Employment Council (For short "VEC") which is at Annexure-1 of the writ petition, it appears that the VEC members' needs to be elected not selected. Since the Government notification provides and specifies that the election is required for the members of the VEC after a gap of every three years and by way of election, the respondent 3/ Block Development Officer & Programme Officer, MGNREGS, Selsella C & RD Block, West Garo Hills District, Meghalaya is directed to conduct the election within a month from the date of receipt of a certified copy of this judgment and order. Moreover, it is also ordered that the respondents No. 4 and 5 are to be allowed to contest the election if they are qualified in accordance with rules and laws.
68. With this observation and direction this instant writ petition is allowed to that extent and stands disposed of.
JUDGE D. Nary