HC grants 12 weeks to Karnataka govt to complete delimitation, reservation exercise for ZP-TP polls

The HC made it clear to the government that it cannot seek an extension

The high court has given the state government 12 weeks to complete the delimitation and reservation so that the State Election Commission (SEC) can conduct the zilla and taluk panchayat elections.

A division bench headed by Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi heard the memo moved by the SEC before the vacation bench in view of the order passed by the apex court in the case of Madhya Pradesh on the issue of conduct of local body elections.

During the hearing, the bench said it would grant eight weeks to complete the exercise as provided by the apex court in the matter involving elections to the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP). However, Advocate General Prabhuling K Navadgi submitted that compared to the BBMP, areas covered under zilla and taluk panchayats are huge and the delimitation exercise would require more time. He also said that a two-member dedicated panel, comprising a retired judge of the high court and a former state election commissioner, was on the job to determine the reservation for OBC and other categories.

Senior advocate K N Phaneendra, appearing for the SEC, submitted that the apex court’s decision in the Madhya Pradesh case is binding on the state government in the present case.

The bench granted 12 weeks to issue notifications pertaining to the delimitation of constituencies and to provide the reservation to OBC and other categories. The court asked the SEC to begin the necessary preparations for conducting the elections a week after the notifications are issued. The petition filed by the SEC has been posted to September 6, 2022, for further hearing.

The SEC had prepared for the elections in April and May 2021 and even announced the reservation draft last year. However, the state government brought in the Karnataka Gram Swaraj and Panchayat Raj (Amendment) Act, 2021. Because of the amendment, all delimitation notifications and all notifications reserving the constituencies of the taluk and zilla Panchayats, which were in force, stood lapsed. The SEC challenged the Amendment Act, 2021, saying it stalled and delayed the elections in the state.