HIGH COURT ADVOCATE ALLEGES GROSS VIOLATION OF SEC 45(1) OF HARYANA MUNICIPAL CORPORATION ACT, 1994
Face2News/Chandigarh
A serious question has been raised over the legal validity of the appointments of Commissioners heading all 11 Municipal Corporations in the State of Haryana, with an Advocate at Punjab & Haryana High Court alleging that the State Government has failed to comply with a mandatory statutory requirement enshrined under the Haryana Municipal Corporation Act, 1994.
In a detailed legal representation addressed to the Governor, Chief Minister, Urban Local Bodies Minister, Chief Secretary, State ULB Department Secretary & Director, Advocate General, Legal Remembrancer(LR), Chairperson of the Haryana State Law Commission and other top government functionaries including all Divisional Commissioners, Deputy Commissioners, Municipal Commissioners in the State of Haryana, Advocate Hemant Kumar has alleged that none of the officers presently functioning as Municipal Commissioners has been appointed through the mandatory notification in the Official Gazette, as required under Section 45(1) of the ibid 1994 Act.
The representation contends that while routine posting and transfer orders have been issued by the Personnel and Training Department of State Government, the statutory Gazette notifications—without which the appointments allegedly do not attain legal validity—have never ever been published.
According to the representation, 10 IAS officers and one Indian Railway Personnel Service (IRPS) officer are presently serving as Commissioners of the Municipal Corporations at Ambala, Faridabad, Gurugram, Hisar, Karnal, Manesar, Panipat, Panchkula, Rohtak, Sonipat and Yamunanagar.
Quoting Section 45(1), Hemant asserted that the law unequivocally provides:
“The Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint a suitable officer as the Commissioner of the Corporation.”
He argues that the language of the statute leaves no room for executive discretion, making publication in the Official Gazette a mandatory legal prerequisite rather than a procedural formality.
Hemant has also further pointed out that the post of Municipal Commissioner is not included in the latest Haryana IAS Cadre Strength notified under the IAS (Fixation of Cadre Strength) Regulations, 1955, as published in the Gazette of India just a fortnight back on June 11, 2026, reinforcing the argument that appointments must strictly comply with the specific statutory mechanism provided under the State law.
The representation also highlights that after amendments made to the Act in 2015, the law no longer restricts the office to IAS officers with a minimum prescribed service. Instead, it merely requires appointment of a “suitable officer.” However, according to the advocate, the Government has never framed any policy defining who qualifies as a “suitable officer,” enabling even non-IAS officers to be appointed—provided the mandatory Gazette notification is first issued.
The Advocate has cited the appointment of an IRPS officer as Commissioner of the Municipal Corporation, Panchkula earlier this year as an example of the amended legal position.
Describing the omission as a continuing statutory violation, the representation warns that the consequences could extend far beyond a procedural irregularity.
It argues that appointments lacking statutory sanction may become vulnerable to judicial scrutiny, while administrative, quasi-judicial and financial decisions taken by such Commissioners could also become susceptible to legal challenge before competent courts.
The representation further contends that by relying solely on departmental transfer and posting orders instead of Gazette notifications, the Government has effectively rendered the statutory requirement under Section 45(1) redundant.
Invoking the well-established principle of administrative law that where a statute prescribes a particular manner for performing an act, it must be performed only in that manner, the Advocate has urged the Government to immediately review the legality of all existing appointments.
The representation seeks immediate publication of Gazette notifications wherever absent, directions ensuring that no officer assumes charge as Municipal Commissioner without prior notification under Section 45(1), and administrative instructions to prevent recurrence of the alleged statutory lapse.
Advocate Hemant also asserted that that despite repeatedly bringing the issue to the notice of the Personnel and Training Department and the Urban Local Bodies Department over the past several years, no corrective action has yet been taken.
Calling the issue one that goes to the heart of administrative legality, statutory compliance and the Rule of Law, the representation urges intervention at the highest level of the State Government to ensure faithful implementation of the law and to safeguard municipal administration from avoidable legal uncertainty.
