Bombay High Court grants relief to BJP's "nominated" member to standing committee

In a relief for BJP leader Balchandra Shirsat, the Bombay High Court quashed the decision of the General Body of the BMC removing him from the standing committee on the ground that he wasn't elected to the civic body but was nominated.

A bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Girish Kulkarni said, "The act of removal of Shirsat from the standing committee of the corporation merely on the ground that he is a nominated councillor and not an elected councillor does not have

statutory support and cannot be countenanced in law."

Shirsat had petitioned the bench through advocate Amogh Singh challenging the September 2020 decision of the general body removing him from th standing committee. He argued that there is no provision in law that bars a person from being nominated to the committee, the prime body in the BMC that takes major decisions related to the city.

The submissions were countered by senior counsels Aspi Chinoy, Anil Sakhare for the Mayor, civic officials and also the BMC, respectively.

"The trigger for this writ petition, which involves a short but interesting question of law, seems to us to be a political rift. The question that we are called upon to decide is whether a nominated councillor of the BMC

having special knowledge or experience in civic administration, can be inducted in the standing committee," the judges said while deciding the case.