Five months needed to hold BBMP polls, govt tells High Court

Five more months are required to complete the process of delimitation of wards and prepare the reservation list to hold elections to the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), the State government told the High Court on Wednesday.

Filing a memo, the government said the committee formed to decide on the bifurcation or trifurcation of BBMP was to submit its report in December 2014 but its term was extended by six months through a government order. The committee is expected to submit its report in June 2015.

The government counsel, however, said the delimitation process had already been started and new voters’ lists were being prepared as per the 2011 census. Even the preparation of reservation list, as per rotation, will take five more months, he added.

When Justice B V Nagarathna demanded what the government would do after April 22, 2015, when the tenure of the present BBMP Council will come to an end, the government counsel said there was provision under the Karnataka Municipal Corporation Act, 1976, to appoint an administrator. The bench was hearing a petition filed by two BJP corporators for holding BBMP elections on time. The bench has reserved its orders.