New Delhi, Nov 11 (UNI) The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Punjab Government and State Election Commission (SEC) that the process for conducting the Municipal Elections should commence within two weeks and be completed within eight weeks thereafter.
A bench comprising Justice Surya Kant and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan issued the directive, partially modifying a Punjab and Haryana High Court order on October 19 that had instructed the Punjab government to notify the municipal elections within 15 days.
The Bench was hearing the State of Punjab’s appeal against the High Court’s order, which had issued a mandamus compelling the Punjab government to initiate the elections.
The Punjab government had argued that a fresh delimitation exercise was necessary, thereby require more time.
While granting an extension, the bench clarified that the petitioner could approach the High Court to request deferral of any contempt proceedings.
Senior Advocate Dr. A.M. Singhvi and Punjab Advocate General Gurminder Singh represented the State of Punjab.
During submissions, Justice Kant observed, “There is no question of delimitation. We don’t want to say anything today, or strictures may follow. First, hold the elections. The five-year term has expired, and the law mandates initiating the process before the term’s expiration.”
Justice Kant also expressed surprise that the Punjab State Election Commission was a petitioner in the case.
The High Court had been tasked with determining whether it was legally permissible to delay municipal elections due to the ongoing delimitation of wards, as the Punjab government argued that a full 16 weeks were needed to complete the delimitation.
Citing Articles 243E and 243U of the Constitution and judicial precedents, the High Court found that the delimitation process could not justify withholding the election.
“The constitutional mandate requires that elections to constitute a Municipality shall be held before the expiration of a period of six months from the date of its dissolution under Article 243U(3)(b).
Consequently, the elections must be completed before the end of their five-year term,” the High Court had noted in its order.
In its directive, the High Court had directed the Punjab State Election Commission and the Punjab government to initiate and notify the election programmes for all Municipalities and Municipal Corporations in question within 15 days, bypassing any need for a fresh delimitation exercise.
