(1) The Council shall elect in the prescribed manner from amongst its members a Chairman who shall, unless he ceases to be a member of the Council earlier, hold office for a period of two years from the date of his election as Chairman and shall be eligible for re-election:
Provided that for a period of two years from the date of the first constitution of the Council under this Act, 14[one of the ex-officio members referred to in clause (d) of subsection (2) of section 3 nominated by the Government] shall be the Chairman of the Council.
(2) The Council shall elect in the prescribed manner, from amongst its members, a Vice-Chairman who shall, unless he ceases to be a member of the Council earlier, hold office for a period of one year from the date of his election and shall be eligible for re-election.
(3) When the office of the Chairman is vacant or in the absence of the Chairman from any meeting, the Vice- Chairman shall perform the functions of the Chairman.
(4) In the absence of the Chairman and the Vice- Chairman a meeting of the Council may be presided over by a member elected by the majority of the members present at the meeting.
6. A person shall be disqualified to become a member of the Council, if such person on the date of his election or nomination to the Council—
14. Substituted by Act No. 28 of 1986.
Term of office of elected and nominated members.
Election of Chairman and Vice-Chairman.
Disqualifications for becoming members.
6 [Act No.23 of 1968]
(a) was sentenced by a criminal court for an offence involving moral turpitude, such sentence not having been reversed or the offence pardoned and a period of five years has not elapsed from the date of the expiration of such sentence;
(b) is of unsound mind and stands so declared by a competent court, a deaf, mute or a leper;
(c) is an applicant to be adjudicated as an insolvent or an undischarged insolvent;
(d) is interested in a subsisting contract made with, or any work being done for, the Council except as a shareholder, other than a director, in a company, or except as may be prescribed; or
(e) is an officer or servant of the Council.
7. An elected or nominated member of the Council shall cease to hold office if he—
(a) is or becomes subject to any of the disqualifications specified in section 6;
(b) absents himself without excuse sufficient in the opinion of the Council, from three consecutive meetings of the Council;
(c) is absent out of India for six consecutive months without excuse sufficient in the opinion of the Council;
(d) ceases to be a registered practitioner;
(e) ceases to hold the office by virtue of which he has been elected or nominated as a member of the Council under section 3.
Cessation of membership.
[Act No. 23 of 1968] 7
8. The Chairman may resign his office by giving notice in writing to the Council and the Vice-Chairman or any member of the Council may resign his office by giving notice in writing to the Chairman. Except in a case where the person resigning delivers the notice of resignation personally to the Registrar, the Registrar shall, on receipt of a notice of resignation, obtain confirmation in writing from the person concerned as to its genuineness. A resignation delivered personally or confirmed as aforesaid shall take effect on and from the date on which the notice was received.
9. Any vacancy occurring in the office of an elected or nominated member of the Council before the expiration of his term shall be filled by election or nomination, as the case may be, of another person in the manner provided in section 3 and the person so elected or nominated shall hold office for the residue of the term of his predecessor.