(1) For the purposes of carrying out of the provisions of this Act there shall be a Corporation charged with the municipal Government of a City. The Corporation for each of the Cities of Amritsar and Ludhiana shall be known as the Municipal Corporation of Amritsar, and the Municipal Corporation of Ludhiana, respectively and the Corporation for every other City constituted under sub-section (2) of section 3 shall be known by the name of "the Municipal Corporation...........(name of the City)".
(2) Every Corporation shall be a body corporate having perpetual succession and a common seal with power, subject to the provisions of this Act, to acquire, hold and dispose of property and may by the said name sue and be sued.
(3) As soon as may be after the appointed day a Corporation which shall be composed of [elected councillors and ex officio councillors,]2 if any, shall be constituted from such date as may be specified in this behalf by notification by the Government.
(4) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (3), on and with effect from the appointed day all powers and duties conferred and imposed upon the Corporation by or under this Act or any other law shall be exercised and performed by the Commissioner till a Corporation is constituted under the aforesaid sub-section.
Section 5 [5. Composition of Corporation-(1) Every Corporation constituted under section 3 shall consist of,-
(i) elected Councillors chosen by direct election; and
(ii) ex officio members comprising the members of the Punjab Legislative Assembly representing the constituencies in which the City or any part thereof falls.
(2) A person who is elected as a Councillor of a Corporation shall not be considered to be an ex officio member, if he is a member of the Punjab Legislative Assembly at the time of his election or becomes such member at any time thereafter and such person shall have all the rights and be subject to all the liabilities of an elected Councillor.
22 Punjab Municipal Corporation Act, 1976, Section 4
1. Substituted by Act 12 of 1994.
2. Substituted for the words ‘‘elected councillors, associate councillors and co-opted councillors’’ by Act 12 of 1994.
(3) The Government shall, from time to time, by notification in the Official Gazette, determine the number of elected Councillors for a Corporation:
Provided that the total number of elected Councillors for a Corporation shall in no case be less than 1[fifty] and more than 2[hundred]:
3[-]
Explanation.-(1) If the constituency of a member of the Punjab Legislative Assembly comprises more than one City, he shall be an ex officio member of the Corporation of such City.
Explanation.-(2) If any City falls in more than one constituency the members of the Punjab Legislative Assembly representing each such constituency shall be ex officio members of the Corporation of such City.]4 Section 6 [6. Reservation of Seats - In every Corporation, out of the total number of elected Councillors determined under sub-section (3) of s. 5, the Government shall reserve,-
(a) Such number of seats for the Scheduled Castes as may be determined by it subject to the condition that the number of seats so reserved shall bear, as nearly as may be the same proportion to the total number of seats to be filled by direct election to the Corporation as the population of Scheduled Castes in that City bears to the total population of that City and such seats may be allotted by rotation to different wards in the City; and
(b) two seats in each Corporation for the members of the Backward Classes, and such seats may be allotted by rotation to different wards in that Corporation;
(2) Not less than one-third of the total number of seats reserved under clause (a), shall be reserved for women belonging to the Scheduled Castes.
(3) Not less than one-third (including the number of seats reserved for women belonging to the Scheduled Castes), of the total number of seats to be filled by direct election, shall be reserved for women and such seats may be allotted by rotation to different wards in the City.
Explanation.-In this section the expression,-
(a) "Scheduled Castes" shall have the same meaning as assigned to them in clause (24) of Article 366 of the Constitution of India; and
(b) "Backward Classes" means the Backward Classes as the Government may, from time to time declare by issuing a notification in the Official Gazette.
Section 6-A 6-A. Reservation for the Offices of Chairperson - Offices of Mayors of Corporations shall be reserved by rotation in the prescribed manner for the members of the Scheduled Castes, Backward Classes and women in the following ratio, namely :- Punjab Municipal Corporation Act, 1976, Section 6 23
1. The word forty substituted vide Punjab Act No. 8 of 1996.
2. The word fifty substituted vide Punjab Act No. 8 of 1996.
3. The second and the third proviso shall be omitted vide Punjab Act No. 8 of 1996.
4. Substituted by Act 12 of 1994.
(a) five per cent for Scheduled Castes;
(b) two per cent for Backward Classes; and
(c) five per cent for women including women belonging to the Scheduled Castes.]1 Section 7 2[7. Duration of Municipal Corporation.- (1) Every Municipal Corporation, save as otherwise provided in this Act, shall continue for five years from the date appointed for its first meeting and no longer.
Explanation. - In this section "first meeting" shall mean the meeting of the newly constituted Corporation held for the election of its Mayor and Deputy Mayor under section 38 of this Act.
(2) All Corporations existing immediately before the commencement of the Constitution (Seventy-Fourth) Amendment Act, 1992, shall continue till the expiration of their duration unless sooner dissolved by a resolution pased to that effect by the State Legislative.
(3) An election to constitute a Corporation shall be completed-
(a) before the expiry of its duration specified in sub-section (1);
(b) before the expiration of a period of six months from the date of its dissolution;
Provided that when the remainder of the period for which the dissolved Corporation would have continued is less than six months, it shall not be necessary to hold any election under clause (b) for constituting the Corporation for such period.
(4) The first election to a Corporation constituted after the commencement of the Punjab Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Act, 1994 shall be held within a period of six months of its being notified as a Corporation.
(5) A Corporation constituted upon the dissolution of a Corporation before the expiration of its duration, shall continue only for the remainder of the period for which the dissolved Corporation would have continued under sub- section (1) had it not been so dissolved.
Section 7-A 7-A. Power of Government to direct holding of general elections - (1) Subject to the provisions of this Act and the rules made thereunder, the Government may, by notification, in the Official Gazette, direct that a general election or an election to fill a casual vacancy of the Councillors of the Corporation, shall be held by such date as may be specified in the notification and different dates may be specified for elections for different Corporations or group or groups of Corporations.
(2) As soon as a notification is issued under sub-section (1), the State Election Commission shall take necessary steps for holding such general election.
24 Punjab Municipal Corporation Act, 1976, Section 7
1. Substituted by Act 12 of 1994.
2. Substituted by Act 12 of 1994.
Section 7-B 7-B. Filling of Casual Vacancies of elected councillors. - (1) Whenever a vacancy occurs by death, resignation, removal or otherwise of an elected councillor, the same shall be filled up by way of election;
Provided that if the vacancy so occurred relates to the Scheduled Castes, Backward Classes or to women, it shall be filled up out of the persons belonging to the category to which the vacancy relates.
(2) A person elected to fill up a casual vacancy shall be elected for the remainder of his successor’s term of office:
Provided that where the remainder of the period, for which a councillor is to be elected, is less than six months, it shall not be necessary to hold any election under this section to fill up such a vacancy."
Section 8