JUDGMENT
R.K. Abichandani, J.
1. The petitioner challenges the order at Annexure ‘A’ to the petition made on 7-1-1995 which is a Circular issued by the Collector calling the First General Meeting of the Municipality for the election of the President and Vice-President of the Municipality on 11-1-1995 at 4-00 p.m. at the office of the Municipality, under Section 32(1) of the Gujarat Municipalities Act, 1963.
2. After a General Election of a Municipality the Collector is required to call the First General Meeting of the Municipality for the determination of the term of the office of the President and Vice-President of the Municipality and for the election of the President and Vice-President. Such meeting is to be called within 25 days from the date on which the names of the Councillors were published in the Official Gazette under Section 6 of the said Act.
3. The impugned Circular clearly refers to the provisions of Section 32(1) of the said Act pursuant to which the First General Meeting is convened. Therefore, the mere fact that the words “Special General Meeting” are used instead of “First General Meeting” makes no difference and it would none-the-less be the First General Meeting of the Municipality as contemplated under Section 32(1) of the Act.
4. It was contended that seven clear days’ notice of a General Meeting is required to be given and three clear days’ notice is to be given for a Special General Meeting, as provided by Section 51(3) of the said Act. Since no such notice was given, the impugned Circular was contrary to the provisions of Section 51(3) of the Act. There is hardly any substance in this contention because the Ordinary General Meeting as contemplated under Section 51(1) of the Act and Special General Meeting contemplated under Section 51(2) of the said Act in respect of which the provision of notice period is made under Section 51(3) of the said Act are different from the First General Meeting contemplated under Section 32 of the said Act for which no such time is prescribed for the notice convening the meeting. The provisions of Section 51(3) are applicable only to the Ordinary General Meetings which are held in the months of January, April, July and October and are fixed by the President as provided in Section 51(1) of the Act and the Special General Meetings called by the President under Section 51(2) of the Act. These meetings which are called by the President are different from the First General Meeting which is called by the Collector under Section 32(1) of the Act for which no provision of any specific number of clear days’ notice akin to Section 51(3) is made. The Collector has, therefore, to give a reasonable notice while convening the First General Meeting under Section 32 of the Act and in the instant case, by the Circular dated 7-1-1995 Collector has convened a meeting on 11-1-1995 which cannot be said to be insufficient or unreasonable notice.
Under the above circumstances, the petitioner has not made out any case for invoking the extraordinary jurisdiction of this Court under Article 226 of the Constitution of India. The petition is, therefore, rejected.