Recently, the Karnataka High Court issued notice to the State government on a public interest litigation filed by the State Election Commission (SEC) seeking directions for the immediate issuance of final reservation notifications for all wards across 187 Municipalities. The Court noted that such notifications are a statutory requirement under Section 13(1)(d) of the Karnataka Municipalities Act, 1964.
The SEC approached the High Court after repeated delays by the State government in publishing the final list of seat reservations for urban local body elections. The Commission sought a direction that the government notify reservations for municipal wards, as well as for the posts of Adhyaksha and Upadhyaksha, in accordance with Section 42(2-A) of the Karnataka Municipalities Act.
The petition points out that urban local bodies are functioning without clarity on seat allocations, creating administrative uncertainty in the run-up to elections.
The SEC argued that the government is under a statutory obligation to issue these reservation notifications and that continued inaction hampers the Commission’s constitutional duties of ensuring timely and fair elections. It submitted that the exercise must be concluded for all 187 Municipalities simultaneously, as mandated under the Act.
The Commission also highlighted that the issue is not limited to Municipalities; a similar delay persists regarding the reservation notifications for Gram Panchayats under the Karnataka Gram Swaraj and Panchayat Raj Act, 1993. A separate petition on this issue is also pending.
A Division Bench of Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice C.M. Poonacha directed issuance of notice to the State government and instructed that a comprehensive counter-affidavit be filed responding to all averments. The Bench noted the seriousness of the matter, recalling that in the connected Panchayat petition, it had already remarked that the issue demanded immediate instructions from the State.
The Court recorded, “Issue notice to the respondent. List on December 11. The respondent shall file a counter affidavit traversing the averments before the next date of hearing.”
The matter has been posted for further hearing on December 11, where both SEC petitions, one concerning Municipalities and the other concerning Gram Panchayats, will be taken up together. The Court is expected to evaluate whether the government’s prolonged delay in issuing reservation notifications amounts to a breach of statutory and constitutional obligations.
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