80. Right to attend meetings of the Corporation and its committees, etc., and right of councillors and aldermen to ask questions in relation to the municipal government ofDelhi.

1[(1) The Commissioner or any municipal officer authorised by him in this behalf may attend, speak in, or otherwise take part in the proceedings of, any meeting of the Corporation or any of its Committees, but none of the persons specified herein shall by virtue of this sub-section be entitled to vote in any such meeting.]

(2) A councillor or 2[person referred to in sub-clauses (ii), (iii) and (iv) of clause (b) of sub-section(3) of section 3] may, subject to the provisions of sub-section (3), ask the Commissioner questions on any matter relating to the municipal government of Delhi or the administration of this Act or the functions of any of the municipal authorities.

(3) The right to ask a question shall be governed by the following conditions, namely:

(a) not less than seven clear days' notice in writing specifying the question shall be given to the Municipal Secretary;

(b) no question shall

(i) bring in any name or statement not strictly necessary to make the question intelligible,

(ii) contain arguments, ironical expressions, imputations, epithets or defamatory statements,

(iii) ask for an expression of opinion or the solution of a hypothetical proposition,

(iv) ask as to the character or conduct of any person except in his official or public capacity,

(v) relate to a matter which is not primarily the concern of the Corporation or of any of the municipal authorities,

(vi) make or imply a charge of a personal character,

(vii) raise questions of policy too large to be dealt with within the limits of an answer to a question,

(viii) repeat in substance questions already answered or to which an answer has been refused.

(ix) ask for information on trivial matters,

(x) ordinarily ask for information on matters of past history,

(xi) ask for information set forth in accessible documents or in ordinary works of reference,

(xii) raise matters under the control of bodies or persons not primarily responsible to the Corporation,

(xiii) ask for any information on matter which is under adjudication by a court of law.

(4) The Mayor shall disallow any question which is, in his opinion, in contravention of the provisions of sub-section (3).

(5) If any doubt arises whether any question is or is not in contravention of the provisions ofsub-section (3), the Mayor shall decide the point and his decision shall be final.

(6) The Commissioner shall not be bound to answer a question if it asks for information which has been communicated to him in confidence or if in the opinion of the Mayor it cannot be answered without prejudice to public interest or the interest of the Corporation.

1. Subs. by Act 67 of 1993, s. 61, for sub-section (1) (w.e.f. 1-10-1993).

2. Subs. by s. 61, ibid., for "alderman" (w.e.f. 1-10-1993).

(7) Unless otherwise directed by the Mayor or the presiding officer of the meeting, every question shall be answered by the Commissioner at a meeting of the Corporation.

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