Can residence in a local area be imposed as a condition for appointment to a local-body post?

Paragraph 17As it could be seen from the above, as both the 2023 Rules and the guidelines issued pursuant thereto deals only with the mode and process of recruitment, reservation, conditions of service, etc., they are well within the scope of Part IX of the Constitution of India and Section 102 of the T.N.P.A. Act. Neither of them exceed the scope of powers vested with the State Legislative under Part IX of the Constitution of India and Section 102 of the T.N.P.A. Act. They are reasonable and not arbitrary in nature. They, in fact, further the idea of Panchayat self-government and better administration when compared to the earlier Rules viz., 2013 Rules. While under the 2013 Rules, the Personal Assistant [Development] to the District Collector was the appointing authority qua Panchayat Secretaries, the 2023 Rules made the Panchayat President as the appointing authority for the post of Panchayat Secretary. Further, in the 2013 Rules, under Rule 5(2)(ii), it was provided that a candidate must be a resident of the Village Panchayat in order to be eligible for appointment as Panchayat Secretary. But in the 2023 Rules, under Rule 3(2)(V), it has only been made as a service condition that the Panchayat Secretary shall be a resident of the Village Panchayat, which means after appointment, the Panchayat Secretary shall reside in the respective Village Panchayat. While the eligibility condition that one must be a resident could be unreasonable, for it hinders providing equal opportunity to a wide range of people and choosing the best among them, the service condition that the Panchayat Secretary shall reside in the Village Panchayat is reasonable given the nature of their duties and responsibilities. Furthermore, under the 2023 Rules, the Panchayat Secretaries are to be trained at the Regional Institute of Panchayat Raj or any other institution as ordered by the Government, and are supposed to pass a test at the end of such training. Besides, they are also supposed to qualify departmental tests conducted by the Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission on the T.N.P.A. Act, relevant Rules and the Constitution of India. These would help ensure the fitness of Panchayat Secretaries for their posts and improve their efficiency level as well. If Panchayat Secretaries are to be recruited by the respective Panchayat Presidents, such level of competence and human resource development cannot be ensured. Moreover, the post of Panchayat Secretary being only one in each Village Panchayat, if Panchayat President is to recruit the Panchayat Secretary, it would not be possible to follow reservation policies [Vide Judgment of Hon'ble Supreme Court in Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education & Research, Chandigarh -vs- Union of India, reported in (1998) 4 SCC 1].