Delay in holding polls no negation of democracy: SC

TN govt agrees to postpone local body polls in nine reconstituted districts

The Supreme Court on Thursday said a delay in holding elections itself cannot be termed as a negation of democracy as it saw nothing wrong in postponing local body polls in newly-reconstituted nine districts of Tamil Nadu, until all the formalities were completed.

“Law must be followed. If it leads postponement or stay of elections, so be it,” a three-judge bench presided over by Chief Justice S A Bobde said, rejecting the Tamil Nadu government's contention that even if there were some imperfections, elections for local bodies, scheduled later this month, must go on.

The bench, also comprising Justices B R Gavai and Surya Kant, asked the state government, led by Advocate Vijay Narayanan and Additional Advocate General Balaji Srinivasan to clarify if local bodies polls in nine districts - Kancheepuram, Chengalpattu, Vellore, Thirupatthur, Ranipeti, Villupuram, Kallakuruchi, Tirunelveli and Tenkasi - could be postponed, pending delimitation.

The state government agreed to the suggestion and said that a notification would be issued to hold polls for all panchayats, intermediate and district levels in all districts, except the nine reconstituted districts.

The top court reserved its order on the petition filed by Amit Anand Tiwari on behalf of the DMK.

During the hearing, senior advocates Mukul Rohatgi, P S Narasimha and C A Sundaram, representing the Tamil Nadu and state election commission, contended polls cannot be suspended except due to exceptional circumstances like riots or natural calamities like flood etc.

Senior advocates A M Singhvi and Kapil Sibal, appearing for DMK, contended four districts have been reconfigured and they have become nine. No delimitation has taken place in those districts. “Democracy is for the basic structure. It sounds simple but it can have grave consequences. The SEC can undertake delimitation in two or three weeks and hold polls in January,” they said.

Narasimha, for his part, said it would put the whole process to halt.