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Chandigarh mayoral polls deferred on ‘absurd & frivolous’ grounds: HC
The Punjab and Haryana high court has directed the UT administration to hold the Chandigarh mayoral polls on January 30 instead of February 6. The court held that the postponement of the elections was unjustified and unreasonable and ordered that the elections be held on January 30 at 10 am. The court also directed that the councillors should not be accompanied by supporters or security personnel from any other state. The Congress and AAP have accused the BJP of delaying the elections due to fear of defeat. The BJP has dismissed the allegations.
The Punjab and Haryana high court (HC) has directed the UT administration to hold the Chandigarh mayoral polls on January 30, instead of February 6.
The UT officers, meanwhile, said they are examining the HC order and may challenge it in the Supreme Court
The HC bench of justice Sudhir Singh and justice Harsh Bunger held that the polls, which were to be held on January 18, were deferred on “absurd and frivolous” grounds.
“The mandate of the Constitution as regards the elections to various bodies, including the municipal corporations, cannot be allowed to be put on hold, without any justifiable and reasonable ground. Since the grounds on which the elections have been deferred are unjustified and unreasonable and the very fact that it has been deferred for 18 long days, adds irrationality to it. As noticed above, we have given the respondents a patient hearing and sufficient opportunity to rectify the said wrong, but to no avail. We, thus, hold that the impugned order is totally unreasonable, unjustified and arbitrary.”
The court was hearing a petition by Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillor Kuldeep Kumar against the administration’s decision to postpone the elections from January 18 to February 6. In his plea, Kumar had demanded that the polls be held within 24 hours. Besides, this plea also demanded the appointment of a court commissioner to oversee the elections.
Directions to DC, UT police
Now, the court has directed that the authorities shall conduct the elections on January 30 at 10 am, and the deputy commissioner is to ensure that the elections are held under the presiding officer nominated by him. The court further held that the councillors, who come for voting, shall not be accompanied by supporters or security personnel belonging to any other state. The Chandigarh police is to provide adequate security to the councillors, the court held, adding that the UT police would also ensure that neither any ruckus nor any untoward incident takes place in or around the premises prior to, during or after the election process at MC office.
Deferment had been announced at last hour
The deferment due to the presiding officer and BJP leader Anil Masih’s poor health was announced at 10.30am, just as AAP and Congress councillors were assembling to vote at the municipal corporation office in Sector 17.
The Congress and the AAP, which have joined hands for the mayoral polls, have accused the BJP of not allowing the elections, fearing “imminent defeat”. The BJP dismissed the allegation.
Following a protest and the Opposition’s plea in the high court, Chandigarh deputy commissioner Vinay Pratap Singh issued fresh orders and announced the next date of elections as February 6. Masih was again nominated as the presiding officer.
In the 35-member MC House, the AAP and the Congress together have 20 votes, while the BJP, which has been ruling the MC for eight years, has 15 votes — 14 of councillors and one of MP Kirron Kher. The magic number is 19.
COURT’S OBSERVATIONS
‘Sufficient opportunity given (to UT) to rectify wrong’
“While adjourning the matter for today (Wednesday), this court had hoped that a better sense would prevail upon the respondents to prepone and conduct the elections at the earliest, but to no avail and thus, this Court, has no option, but to proceed to hear the final arguments today itself,” the bench held while indicating to the circumstances under which it had to pass the order on Wednesday as UT stuck to its stand of not preponing the polls.
‘Could have appointed any other presiding officer’
The court said that one of the arguments taken by the UT to defer the polls is of illness of presiding officer Anil Masih, which is not justified as the deputy commissioner had powers to nominate any other presiding officer.
Polls deferred on “absurd & frivolous” grounds
The court observed that apprehensions raised with regards to possibility of clashes, as reported on January 16 at MC office, were not that “grave” so as to fall within the definition of emergent crisis or natural calamity and also leading to a situation, which could not have been addressed by the administration.
“One could have understood the situation, if there was any emergent crisis or natural calamity. However, there being none, we are constrained to observe that the grounds to defer the elections in question, are totally absurd and frivolous,” the bench recorded ordering the polls on January 30.
They say:
We welcome the HC decision, there was unnecessary delay in holding the mayoral elections. The BJP should let the elections happen and not thwart the democratic process.
HS Lucky, Chandigarh Congress president
The court has saved democracy and finally, AAP will win. People of Chandigarh had chosen AAP and now it’s time for us to deliver on the promises.
SS Ahluwalia, Chandigarh AAP co-incharge
The AAP-Congress alliance in Chandigarh won’t work. We will win the polls on January 30.
Jatinder Pal Malhotra, Chandigarh BJP president
