UditVani, Ranchi : The Jharkhand High Court on Tuesday expressed strong displeasure over the state government’s continued delay in holding municipal elections. Hearing a contempt petition, the court directed the government to send its recommendation to the State Election Commission (SEC) within three weeks for conducting the long-pending polls to urban local bodies.
The bench of Justice Ananda Sen issued the directive during the hearing, where Chief Secretary Avinash Kumar, Home Secretary Vandana Dadel, Urban Development Principal Secretary Sunil Kumar, and Additional Secretary Gyanendra Kumar were present.
Advocate General Rajiv Ranjan, representing the state, informed the court that the delay was due to the pending decision on reservation percentages for the Other Backward Classes (OBCs). He said the “triple test” survey for determining OBC reservation had been completed and that the report would soon be sent to the Cabinet for approval. Once approved, the government would forward its recommendation to the Election Commission to conduct the polls.
The court, however, made it clear that the government could not indefinitely postpone the elections under the pretext of completing the triple test process. The SEC’s counsel, Sumit Gadodia, sought three months to prepare for the elections, but the court rejected the request.
The bench instructed the SEC to submit a clear timeline at the next hearing, scheduled for November 10, on how soon it could hold the elections. The court also directed the Chief Secretary, Home Secretary, and Urban Development Secretary to be present at the next hearing.
The case stems from a contempt petition filed by Roshni Khalkho, a former councillor of the Ranchi Municipal Corporation. Earlier, on January 4, 2024, the High Court had ordered the government to ensure municipal elections within three weeks — an order yet to be implemented.
Jharkhand currently has 48 urban local bodies, including 12 where elections have been pending since June 2020, while the terms of the remaining bodies expired in April 2023.
