V. S. KOKJE, J. ( 1 ) THIS order shall also dispose of M. P. No. 1124 / 92 (Satya Pal Anand v. Secretary, Urban Administration) as both the cases were heard together and are for the same relief. It is contended by the petitioners that the elected Council of the Indore Municipal Corporation completed its tenure and went out of office in March, 1987 and Administrator appointed under the provisions of M. P. Municipal Corporation Act, 1956 was working in the place of the elected Council since then and is not taking any steps to hold elections. In, the return also it has not been disputed that the elections are due and should have been held but some practical difficulties about preparation of electoral roll, division of wards, etc. , have been pointed out. ( 2 ) IN Awas Samasya Niwaran Sanstha, Indore v. State of M. P. , 1982 MPLJ 410 , which was also a petition filed by the same petitioner who has filed M. P. No. 136/ 87, a time bound writ of mandamus was issued to hold elections relying on decision in Munnemiya v. State of M. P. , 1981 MPLJ 222 and Gopal Jairam v. State of M. P. , AIR 1951 Nag 181. The law is, therefore, settled that a writ of mandamus can be issued directing the respondents to hold elections. We would, however, like to elaborate on certain points which were not touched in the aforesaid decisions. ( 3 ) SECTION 20 of the Act prescribes the term of office of the Councillors: elected at a general election or selected by the elected Council. It reads as under:-"20. Terms of Office.- (1) The terms of office of the councillor elected at a general election or (selected by the elected councillors under this Act) shall ordinarily be four years extensible by order of the Government for a period not exceeding one year in the aggregate for reasons which shall be notified in the Gazette. (2) The term of the office of such councillors shall be deemed to commence on the date appointed for the first general meeting after such election. (4) If within the period of four years mentioned in sub-sec. (2) The term of the office of such councillors shall be deemed to commence on the date appointed for the first general meeting after such election. (4) If within the period of four years mentioned in sub-sec. (1) or if the said period of four years is extended thereunder then if within period as extended, the Corporation is not newly constituted, the Corporation shall on the expiry of the said period of four years or the extended period, as the case may be, stand dissolved and the provisions of S. 423 shall apply in respect thereof as they apply in respect of dissolution under S. 422-A. "it is clear that the term prescribed is four years extensible by a period not exceeding one year in the aggregate: On the expiry of the original or extended period the Corporation would stand dissolved and the provisions of S. 423 applied as if the Corporation has been dissolved under S. 422-A. The relevant portion of S. 423 reads as under:-"423. Consequences, of supersession or dissolution - (1) When the Corporation is superseded under S. 422, or stands dissolved under S. 422-A the following consequences shall ensue - (1) All the Councillors of the Corporation shall, vacate their office - (i) in the case of supersession, as from the date appointed under sub-sec. (1) of S. 422: (a) where the Corporation stands dissolved under S. 422-A, as from the relevant date specified in that section; (b) where the Corporation stands dissolved under sub-sec. (4) of S. 20, as from the date of dissolution under the said sub-section; (c) all powers and duties of the Corporation, the Standing Committee and Appeal Committee under this Act, may, until the Corporation is reconstituted, be exercised and performed by such person or a Committee or persons as the State Government may appoint in that behalf; (d) all property vested in the Corporation shall until the Corporation is reconstituted, vest in such person or Committee in trust for the purpose of this Act. ". . . . . . . . Section 424 of the Act provides for reconstitution of the Corporation. The relevant portion of which reads as under:-"424 Constitution of Corporation.- (1 ). . . . . (2) The Administrator of the City shall forthwith proceed to prepare a register of electors and to hold an election ofCouncillors in accordance with the provisions of this Act. . . . Section 424 of the Act provides for reconstitution of the Corporation. The relevant portion of which reads as under:-"424 Constitution of Corporation.- (1 ). . . . . (2) The Administrator of the City shall forthwith proceed to prepare a register of electors and to hold an election ofCouncillors in accordance with the provisions of this Act. (3) to (7 ). . . . . . Thus under the scheme of the Act as soon as the original or the extended term of the elected Council expires, S. 423 comes into play enabling the State Government to appoint an Administrator who acts as the Trustee of all the property vested in the Corporation for the purpose of the Act. Section 423 (2) also comes into play immediately on the Administrator being appointed and such an Administrator is charged with the duty to forthwith proceed to prepare a register of electors and to hold an election of Councillors in accordance with the provisions of the Act. The Legislature has not without any purpose charged the Administrator himself with the duty to forthwith proceed to prepare electoral rolls and to hold election of councillors in accordance with the provisions of the Act. The duty is not entrusted to the State Government or any other higher officer. It is deliberately entrusted to the person appointed as Administrator because he is the trustee of the property of the Corporation and it is a part of the trust to hold elections forthwith in accordance with the provisions of the Act. It appears that in the earlier case filed by the' Awas Samasya Nivaran Sanstha (supra) this aspect was not brought before the court and, therefore, it was observed inpara 7 of that decision by observing as follows:-"it is true that no time limit is fixed within which the Corporation is required to be reconstituted. However, when a Statute provides no date for holding elections, it has to be inferred that elections must be held within a reasonable time; and when the authority entrusted with the duty to hold elections abuses its discretion by not holding elections for inordinately long period, the court can control its action by directing it to hold elections and by fixing a date for the same. "the court further observed in para 8 as under:-"there is also no dispute that for all the period after 1970 no elections have been held for reconstitution of the Corporation. The period of 10 years, which has so elapsed can by no stretch of imagination be taken to be a reasonable time for the purpose. "though, the aforesaid observations do not run counter to the view which we are taking, but it would be proper to explain that though the Act has not put a specific time limit on the reconstitution of the Council of the Corporation, by using the word 'forthwith' in S. 424 (2), the Legislature has clearly indicated that the elections have to immediately follow the dissolution of the Council by expiry of the term or otherwise. To keep the Corporation under the charge of an Administrator for long periods was never the intention of the Legislature. The time taken for completing the procedure of elections can only be said to be the time within which the elections have to be completed. Actually, the main duty of the Administrator is to see that the elections are held forthwith and the Corporation is handed over to the elected body within the minimum time possible. ( 4 ) GIVING a go-by to the democratic process by establishing bureaucratic fiction seems to have become a national malady. Otherwise, the Parliament would not have been compelled to amend the Constitution to put a constitutional embargo on such tendency to grab power wherever it is and to stick to it interminably. By the Constitutional (74th Amendment) Act, 1992 which received the assent of the President on 20/04/1993 and which came into force from 1-6-1993, a whole Part IX-A was added to the Constitution. The Constitution now provides for composition of municipalities, constitution and composition of wards, committees, reservation of seats, disqualification of membership, etc. More importantly the Constitution now prescribes for the constitution of the Municipalities which includes Municipal Corporation. Article 243u reads as under:-"243u. Duration of Municipalities etc.- (1) Every Municipality, unless sooner dissolved under anylaw for the time being in force, shall continue for five years from the date appointed for its first meeting and no longer; provided that a Municipality shall be given a reasonable opportunity of being heard before its dissolution. Article 243u reads as under:-"243u. Duration of Municipalities etc.- (1) Every Municipality, unless sooner dissolved under anylaw for the time being in force, shall continue for five years from the date appointed for its first meeting and no longer; provided that a Municipality shall be given a reasonable opportunity of being heard before its dissolution. (2) No amendment of any law for the time being in force shall have the effect of causing dissolution of a Municipality at the level which is functioning immediately before such amendment till the expiration of its duration specified in clause (1 ). (3) An election to constitute a Municipality shall be completed,- (a) before the expiry of its duration specified in clause (1) (b) before the expiration of a period of six months from the date of its dissolution. Provided that where the remainder- of the period for which the dissolved Municipality would have continued is less than six months, it shall not be necessary to hold any election under this clause for constituting the Municipality for such period. (4) A Municipality constituted upon the dissolution of a Municipality before the expiration of its duration shall continue only for the remainder of the period for which the dissolved Municipality would have continued under clause (1) had it not been so dissolved. "article 243-ZA provides that the superintendence, direction and elections to Municipalities shall be vested in the State Election Commission referred to in Art. 243-K, which was introduced in the Constitution by the Constitution (Seventythird Amendment) Act, 1992 which received the assent of the President on 20-4-1993 and was brought into force on 24-4-93. Article 243-K reads as under:-"243-K. Elections to the Panchayats.- (1) The superintendence, direction and control of the preparation of electoral rolls for, and the conduct of, all elections to the Panchayats shall be vested in a State Election Commission consisting of a State Election Commissioner to be appointed by the Governor. Article 243-K reads as under:-"243-K. Elections to the Panchayats.- (1) The superintendence, direction and control of the preparation of electoral rolls for, and the conduct of, all elections to the Panchayats shall be vested in a State Election Commission consisting of a State Election Commissioner to be appointed by the Governor. (2) Subject to the provisions of any law made by the Legislature of a State, the conditions of service and tenure of office of the State Election Commissioner shall be such as the Governor may by rule determine; provided that the State Election Commissioner shall not be removed from his office except in like manner and on the like grounds as a Judge of a High Court and the conditions of service of the State Election Commissioner shall not be varied to his disadvantage after his appointment. (3) The Governor of a State shall, when so requested by the State Election Commission, make available to the State Election Commission such staff as may be necessary for the discharge of the functions conferred on the State Election Commission by clause (1) (4) Subject to the provisions of this Constitution -the Legislature of a State may, by law, make provision with respect to all matters relating to, or in connection with elections to the Panchayats. " ( 5 ) IN the circumstances above, looking to the drastic change in the law relating to Municipal Elections it would not be proper or practical to direct the Administrator to hold the elections forthwith. It appears that the State Govt. and the State Legislature will have to undergo the exercise of bringing the present statute governing the Municipalities and Municipal Corporations in tune with the amendments to the Constitution. Any elections held before going through the necessary exercise will run in rough weather and are bound to be bogged down by legal controversies. It would, therefore, be necessary to provide for a reasonable period of time to the respondents for taking steps in the direction of installing an elected body for local self governance of the area. The undemocratic practice of keeping the corporation under an Administrator for long-long periods, only intermittently handing over the Corporation under compulsion of court orders to the people's representatives, has now been made impossible to follow by the amendment of the. Constitution itself. The undemocratic practice of keeping the corporation under an Administrator for long-long periods, only intermittently handing over the Corporation under compulsion of court orders to the people's representatives, has now been made impossible to follow by the amendment of the. Constitution itself. Any elected body which is hereafter installed, shall not suffer dissolution or forestalling of elections as the Constitution itself makes adequate provisions against such mal-practices. We think, we should give the respondents a period of six months to complete the entire exercise. We, therefore, direct that the respondents shall hold elections before 31-10-1994. All legal, legislative and procedural formalities can be completed well within this period to keep the elections free of unconstitutionality. The respondents shall pay costs of the petition No. 136/87, which is not only an earlier petition but it is the petition by the petitioner who had even earlier filed M. P. No. 215/ 1980 which resulted in direction for holding elections last time. Costs quantified at Rs. 2500/ -. We also record our appreciation of the services rendered by the petitioner in M. P. No. 136/ 87 by bringing this genuine public interest litigation in the interest of democracy and rule of law. However, there shall be no order as to costs in M. P. No. 1124/92, which was also heard along with this case. With these directions the petitions stand allowed. Orderaccordingly. .