HC Gives Green Signal For Municipal Elections

The Telangana High Court today gave the green signal for the holding of elections to municipal corporations and municipalities in the State.

After hearing the arguments of both sides, a two-judge bench of the High Court comprising Chief Justice Raghavendra Singh Chauhan and Justice A Abhishek Reddy rejected two writ petitions questioning the ongoing process.

Declining to intervene, the court said that the Election Commission would act on the division of wards, reservations and other issues related to the conducting of the elections, and that the Election Commission and the State government would coordinate to take care of the polls as per set norms.

When the petitioner, one Anju Kumar Reddy, filed a writ complaining of improper identification of constituencies/wards, Chief Justice Chauhan pointed out that there was a constitutional bar under Article 243 ZG, and that such issues could only be raised before the Election Tribunal. The bench refused to quash the government order issued on June 29 on the ground that there was an absolute constitutional bar.

In a connected plea on the question of the identification of SC, ST, BC and women voters, and preparation of voters' lists, the bench again refused to interfere. It reasoned that the allegations were without any cogent evidence. It also pointed out that the persons affected were not before the court. Noticing that the electoral roll was based on the Assembly election rolls, it pointed out that other grounds raised were premature.

With this, the State government is free to take the necessary steps, and the Election Commission will go ahead with the process for the local body elections in the near future.

The State has a total of 13 municipal corporations and 128 municipalities. Of them, 10 corporations and 121 municipalities are to go to the polls. The tenures of three municipal corporations - those of Greater Hyderabad, Greater Warangal and Greater Khammam - are not yet complete. The tenures of Siddipet and Achchampet municipalities is also not complete. And due to some problems, elections to five other municipalities will not be held.