A war of words erupted between the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over delay in electing the chairperson and vice-chairperson of the Shimla Zila Parishad on Monday.
While the Leader of Opposition Jai Ram Thakur stepped up the criticism of the chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu-led Congress government over its “failure” to elect the key office-bearers, Sukhu has said that Thakur must first explain why he took the zila parishad members to Panchkula when the election date had already been fixed.
The results of the elections for panchayati raj institutions in the state were declared on May 31. However, even after 70 days, the elections for the zila parishad chairperson and vice-chairperson in Shimla district have not taken place, with the 13 BJP-backed elected members on Monday moving to Himachal Pradesh high court seeking directions to Shimla deputy commissioner to convene a meeting to hold election of chairperson at the earliest.
“This is the most unfortunate that the elected members of the Shimla zila parishad are being compelled to knock on the doors of the Himachal Pradesh HC to get the election for their chairperson and vice-chairperson conducted. This situation itself speaks volumes about the government’s attitude towards panchayati raj institutions and the public mandate,” Jai Ram said.
Thakur said that a petition filed on August 10 by 13 elected members demanding the immediate convening of a statutory meeting to elect the chairperson and vice-chairperson. The petition has urged the completion of the election process in accordance with Section 90 of the Himachal Pradesh Panchayati Raj Act, 1994, and the relevant election rules, he said.
{{/usCountry}}Thakur said that a petition filed on August 10 by 13 elected members demanding the immediate convening of a statutory meeting to elect the chairperson and vice-chairperson. The petition has urged the completion of the election process in accordance with Section 90 of the Himachal Pradesh Panchayati Raj Act, 1994, and the relevant election rules, he said.
{{/usCountry}}The BJP leader also said that the timeline of events itself raises questions about the functioning of the government and the administration. “On June 3, the Shimla DC issued a notice summoning all elected members to a meeting on June 6. This notice explicitly cited Sections 90 and 127 of the Himachal Pradesh Panchayati Raj Act. All elected members attended the meeting on June 6; the requisite quorum was met, and the oath was administered to everyone. Despite this, the election for the chairperson and vice-chairperson was not conducted, and the meeting was adjourned without assigning any reason.”
Thakur said, “This is the biggest question. When the entire House was present, the quorum was complete, and the oath-taking had concluded, why were the elections not held? The government must answer this.”
However, the chief minister said that Thakur must first explain why he took the zila parishad members to Panchkula when the election date had already been fixed.
Sukh said that the zila parishad elections are bound to happen and nothing can stop them and there is no issue with announcing the election date.
“If Jai Ram Ji wants to sit on a dharna, let him sit, that’s a good thing. But the question is, when the DC had called a meeting to fix the election date, why did the BJP took zila parishad members to Panchkula that day? And after that, he’s even taken them on a Rajasthan tour. We are already prepared for the elections, but he is taking the zila parishad members around for political gain. I would even say, let them take them around a bit more, have them visit the deities too. Once their sightseeing is complete, then bring them into the elections,” said Sukhu.