HC issues notice to govt, SEC on PIL on panchayat poll

The Himachal Pradesh High Court has issued notices to the state government and the State Election Commission (SEC) on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking directions for holding panchayat elections on time.

A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Gurmeet Singh Sandhawalia and Justice Jiya Lal Bhardwaj passed the order after hearing the matter and fixed December 22 as the next date of hearing.

The PIL seeks directions to ensure that Panchayati Raj elections are conducted within the constitutionally mandated timeline. During the proceedings, the state government assured the court that the election process would commence before December 21.

The petitioner contended that neither the state government nor the State Election Commission has initiated any preparations to conduct the elections within the time limit prescribed under the Constitution. It was argued that delaying the elections would be in violation of constitutional provisions mandating that Panchayat elections must be held every five years.

The court was informed that the term of the current panchayat representatives will expire in January, raising apprehensions that the government may attempt to defer the polls by invoking provisions of the Disaster Management Act.