Uttarakhand High Court
Naimulshan Khan And Another ... vs State Of Uttarakhand And Others on 25 September, 2025
IN THE HIGH COURT OF UTTARAKHAND AT NAINITAL
THE HON'BLE CHIEF JUSTICE MR. G. NARENDAR
AND
THE HON'BLE JUSTICE MR. SUBHASH UPADHYAY
Writ Petition (M/B) No.20 of 2025
Naimulshan Khan and Another --Petitioners
Versus
State of Uttarakhand and Others --Respondents
With
Writ Petition (PIL) No.176 of 2024
Mohd Yaseen --Petitioner
Versus
State of Uttarakhand and Others --Respondents
With
Writ Petition (M/S) No.1327 of 2025
Mohd Rafiq --Petitioner
Versus
State of Uttarakhand and Others --Respondents
24 September, 2025
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Presence:-
Mr. Mukul Talwar, learned Senior Counsel (through V.C.) along
with Mr. Dushyant Mainali, learned counsel for the petitioners.
1
Mr. C.S. Rawat, learned Chief Standing Counsel along with Mr.
Yogesh Chandra Tiwari, learned Standing Counsel for the State
of Uttarakhand.
Mr. Sanjay Bhatt, learned counsel for State Election Commission/
respondent no.4.
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JUDGMENT :
(per Mr. G. Narendar C. J.)
1. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioners,
the learned Chief Standing Counsel for the State as well
as the learned counsel for respondent no.4
2. Petitioners in WPMB No.20/2025 are resident
of Ward No.2 Siroli Kalan, Kichha Municipality, District
Udham Singh Nagar and are seeking the following
reliefs:-
"i) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of
mandamus commanding and directing the respondents
to immediately take effective steps to initiate and
complete the election process for constituting the
Board of Kichha Municipal Council (Nagar Palika
Parishad) of district Udham Singh Nagar without any
undue delay in view of the constitutional mandate
contemplated under Article 243U of the Constitution of
India.
ii) To issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of
mandamus directing and commanding the respondents
to conduct the elections Kichha Municipal Council of
district Udham Singh Nagar as per the existing number
of wards since previous election, in view of the
directions dated 20.12.2024 issued by this Hon'ble
Court in WPPIL No. 176 of 2024 and WPMB No. 588 of
2024."
3. WPPIL No.176/2024 is preferred by another
resident of Ward No.6 of Siroli Kalan, Kichha
Municipality, District Udham Singh Nagar seeking the
following reliefs:-
"i) Issue a writ of certiorari to quash the Notification
No. 1154/IV(3)/2024-1(14?kks०)/2019 dated 03.09.2024,
issued by the respondent no. 2, whereby, the Siroli
Kalan area (comprising of Ward Nos. 18, 19, 20 and
partial area of Ward No. 17 of the Kichha Municipality)
has been excluded from the Municipal Limits of Nagar
Palika Kichha, District Udham Singh Nagar, without
providing any status (annexed at Annexure No.1).
ii) Issue a writ of certiorari to quash the consequential
notification no. 1159/IV(3)/2024-11(03 fUkOkkZ०)/2022
dated 03.09.2024, issued by the respondent no. 2, to
the "extent of reconstitution and delimitation of
Municipal Ward Nos. 18, 19, 20 and partial area of
Ward No. 17 of Nagar Palika Kichha excluding the
portions of Siroli Kalan area (erstwhile village Siroli
Kalan prior to 2018) (annexed at Annexure No.2)."
4. The third petition WPMS No.1327/2025 is
preferred by another resident of Siroli Kalan Ward,
Kichha Municipality, District Udham Singh Nagar
seeking for the following reliefs:-
"i) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of
certiorari quashing the impugned tentative notification
dated 24.04.2025 (Annexure No. 1 to the writ petition)
issued by the Deputy Secretary, Urban Development
Department, Uttarakhand, which is in utter
contravention of the scheme contained under Article
243Q of the Constitution of India and is in utter
disregard of the directions of this Hon'ble Court
pertaining to the exclusion of certain Wards of
Municipality Kichha from the Kichha Nagar Palika.
ii) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of
mandamus directing and commanding the State to
ensure timely conduct of election of Municipality
Kichha as per the delimitation of ward as it existed in
the year of last Municipal election, without any further
delay."
5. On a reading of the various reliefs sought, it
is seen that the petitioners have been agitating and are
aggrieved by the attempts to separate Ward Siroli
Kalan from the Kichha Municipality; in fact the latest
effort in the said exercise is under the Notification
dated 19.05.2025, where the Government by
Notification dated supra has been pleased to declare
the Siroli Kala Ward of Kichha Municipality to be a
Nagar Panchayat/Transitional area in terms of Article
243Q Clause (1) (a) of the Constitution.
6. The legality of the same came to be
questioned in WPMB No.1327/2025 i.e. the third
petition connected along with WPMB No.20/2025. The
learned Single Judge, after a detailed hearing and by a
detailed order, has been pleased to grant an interim
order dated 20.05.2025, after taking note of the
Notification dated 19.05.2025 and further directed the
respondent-State to comply with the order dated
13.11.2024 passed in WPPIL No.176/2024. The Division
Bench in WPPIL No.176/2024 has been pleased to pass
an interim order and para-5 and 6 of the order read as
under:-
"5. Learned Senior Counsel for petitioner submits
that, since State Government had applied its mind
to the ground reality, and had declared Village
Siroli Kalan as part of municipality, because of the
urbanisation, which had taken place in the Village,
therefore, there is no material available with State
Government to take a decision after six years,
when further progress has been made in the
locality, to declare it to be a rural area. This,
according to petitioner, is impermissible, as per the
provisions of the Constitution of India, and also the
Municipalities Act.
6. We find some substance in the said submission.
Once State Government declares a Revenue Village
to be a part of a municipality, then, as per the
statutory provisions, there is no going back for
State Government, and the area, which has been
declared as municipality, has to be treated as part
of the municipal area, and it cannot be, thereafter,
treated as a Revenue Village."
7. Thus, what can be inferred from the above is
that the residents of Siroli Kalan have been consistently
opposing the separation of the Siroli Kalan Ward from
the Kichha Municipality. The said issue is seized of by
the learned Single Judge and this Division Bench while
hearing the WPPIL No.176/2024 and also WPMB
No.20/2025 was pleased to withdraw the writ petition
to the Division Bench.
8. Having perused the interim orders passed by
the learned Single Judge, it is apparent that the learned
Single Judge has already conducted a detailed hearing.
In that view, the direction now sought for conducting
election being consequential to the determination of the
main issue, we are of the opinion that it would be
appropriate if the Division Bench would have the
benefit of the wisdom of the learned Single Judge
regarding the constitutionality and the vires of the
impugned Notifications issued.
9. In that view, we are of the view that the
matters including the WPPIL No.176/2024 and all the
petitions relating to the issue of separation of Siroli
Kalan Ward from the composition of the Kichha
Municipality would be required to be heard by the
learned Single Judge as the matter has been heard in
essence by Justice Rakesh Thapliyal. Hence, with the
consent of the parties, the matters are transferred to
the learned Single Judge for hearing and expeditious
disposal of the petitions.
10. In that view, let the petitions be placed
before the bench of Justice Rakesh Thapliyal for hearing
and disposal. We request the learned Single Judge to
expedite the hearing and disposal as expeditiously as
possible.
11. Copy of this order be furnished to the
Registrar (Judicial).
12. The respondents have also placed the record
relating to consideration of the objections, etc. The
same be also placed before the learned Single Judge.
(G. NARENDAR, C. J.)
(SUBHASH UPADHYAY, J.)
Dated: 24.09.2025
R/SS
