Nominated Members posts in 17 Ward Councils (Prabhag Samitee) has been kept vacant for the past 21 months.

It seems the Mumbai Municipal corporation and the 227 elected municipal corporators have a dislike towards the Nominated members in the 17 Municipal Ward Councils, because these ward Councils are functioning without the 3 nominated Members for the past 21 months as per the information provided by the Municipal Secretary department to RTI Activist Anil Galgali.

RTI Activist Anil Galgali had sought information from the Municipal Secretary department about various queries pertaining to nomination of the 3 members in the 17 Ward Councils. The Dy Municipal Secretary, Abdul Latif Kazi in a response to the queries informed that, since 8th March 2017 the position of  nominated members in the 17 Ward Councils have not been filled up. The position of Nominated members are filled up after the process is initiated by the Municipal Secretary department by issuing an Advt for the applications.

As per the constitutional provisions, and to ensure the devolution of powers in the Local Self government, the Section 50TT of the Mumbai Municipal corporation Act 1888 was ammended. After the ammendment the Municipal Corporation segregated the Greater Mumbai area into 17 Ward Councils, which includes the elected municipal corporators elected from the various wards comprised in the area under each Ward Council. Also as per ammendment, maximum 3 prestigious and respected person's engaged in various social activities through NGO's, Social Welfare organisation, etc are nominated to the Ward Councils as members.

There are always speculations that these nominated members act as stumbling block for the elected corporators as they keep a check on the various public activities carried out by the Municipal Corporation in those wards. To avoid this instances of nomination of those who lost their election  and close chamchas have also been found in the past, thereby creating a back door entry for such political workers. With 3 posts in the 17 municipal ward council each, a total of 51 seats meant for representative of NGO'S and social organisations have been deprived of opportunity to work for the welfare of the people in the area due to abject carelessness of the Mumbai Municipal Corporation in general and the Municipal Secretary office in particular alleged Anil Galgali. In a letter addressed to CM Devendra Fadnavis, Anil Galgali has demanded action against those officials responsible for the lapse and has appealed the Municipal Commissioner to uphold and respect the Constitutional provisions