"In considering whether a statute is
imperative, Denman, J. quoted: ’a balance
may be struck between the inconvenience of
sometimes rigidly adhering to, and the
convenience of sometimes departing from its
terms. It was held in that case that where
a public officer is directed by a statute
to perform a duty within a specified time
the cases establish tat provisions as to
time are only directory. Similarly, it has
been held while construing s.17(1) of the
Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, that it is
obligatory on the Government to publish an
award, but the provision, that it should be
published within thirty days, is not
mandatory and an award published beyond
thirty days is not valid. A provision
fixing a time, within which a public
officer or authority has to act in
performance of a duty, generally means that
the statute considers it reasonable for the
offer or authority to act within the said
period. The expiry of the period without
more confers no right unless the statute by
a legal fiction or otherwise confers a
right. Thus, a provision in a Municipal
Act that an application for layout should
be disposed of within a particular time
should be disposed of within a particular
time does not mean that the application
must be deemed to have been granted after
expiry of the said period unless there is a
provision to that effect made in the Act.
