Jharkhand HC slams govt over delay in municipal polls, top officials appear in person

Ranchi, Sep 2 (IANS) The Jharkhand High Court has pulled up the state government for failing to hold municipal body elections despite repeated directions.

Expressing strong displeasure, the court on Tuesday summoned the Chief Secretary and the Principal Secretary of the Urban Development Department, who appeared in person during the contempt hearing.

A bench of Justice Ananda Sen observed that the government was “continuously disregarding” the court’s orders and questioned why contempt proceedings should not be initiated against the Chief Secretary.

The court has fixed September 10 for the next hearing and directed the Chief Secretary to present a clear timeline for conducting the elections.

During the proceedings, the bench reminded the state that on January 4, 2024, it had categorically ordered municipal elections to be completed within three weeks on a petition filed by outgoing Ranchi Municipal Corporation councillor Roshni Khalkho. However, the order remains unimplemented so far.

Advocate Vinod Singh, appearing for the petitioner, urged the court to take strict action for willful disobedience.

Earlier, the court had strongly criticised the government’s approach, remarking that by bypassing judicial orders, the administration was flouting the “rule of law” and giving the impression that the “constitutional system has failed in the state.”

The tenure of all municipal bodies in Jharkhand expired in April 2023. Fresh elections were to be conducted by April 27 that year, but the process stalled after the state government decided to determine the percentage of OBC reservation in urban local bodies through a “triple test.”

Although the exercise began nearly a year ago, it remains incomplete.

In the absence of elected representatives, the administration of municipal corporations, municipalities, municipal councils and nagar panchayats has been handed over to government-appointed administrators for more than two years, leaving urban governance in the state entirely under bureaucratic control.

--IANS

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