Pleas challenging delimitation of wards: Karnataka HC issues notice to state, BBMP

The high court on Wednesday ordered notice to the state government, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) and the State Election Commission (SEC) on a batch of petitions challenging the new notification pertaining to delimitation of wards. Justice Hemant Chandanagoudar has posted the petitions to August 16.

The petitions were filed challenging the July 14, 2022 notification drawing new delimitation of wards in the BBMP.

The petitions have been filed challenging delimitation of wards in various Assembly constituencies.

One of the grounds in these petitions is that the delimitation exercise has been conducted in 243 wards based on the 2011 census.

One of the petitions claimed that the exercise has been carried out without taking into account the 61% increase in the city’s population, from 84,63,475 as per the 2011 census to the present 1.3 crore population.

According to the petitioners, there was no compelling need for delimitation and the authorities have only interchanged the boundaries of the wards coming under the assembly constituencies. The petitioners claimed that a fresh exercise will have to be conducted since the authorities have altered only the boundaries of the wards and the notification doesn’t even mention the population of each ward and also the exercise is illegal in terms of Section 7 of the BBMP Act.

In a petition, the petitioners — Shanthinagar Block Congress Committee and Koramangala Youth Welfare Association — have prayed for direction to restore the Domlur, Jogupalya, Vannarpet, Shanthala Nagar, Shanthi Nagar, Austin Town, Neelasandra and Koramangala wards in their status prior to 2021.

The petition challenging the delimitation of wards in the Chamarajpet Assembly constituency also alleged an arbitrary approach by the state government. The new delimitation has reduced the number of wards from seven to six in the Chamarajpet Assembly constituency.

The petition stated that the ratio and approximate population per ward as prevailing in Govindarajanagar, Padmanabhanagar and other constituencies were to be made applicable to the Chamarajpet Assembly constituency; two more wards were to be added to the present wards.

“The malafide intention was to remove the two other wards. The state power has been used arbitrarily,” the petition said.