Himachal HC directs state govt, EC to conduct panchayat polls before April 30

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Yog Raj Sharma

The North News

Shimla, January 9

In a major setback to the state government, Himachal Pradesh High Court has directed the state government to conduct elections before April 30. In its order, the High  Court said that the entire election process must be completed in a time-bound manner. The court instructed the state government and the State Election Commission to finalise all procedural formalities by February 28  and ensure that polling is completed by  April 30. The court had reserved its judgment on 7 January, following the conclusion of arguments from both sides.

The high court passed order acting on from a public interest litigation(PIL) filed in November by Dikkan Kumar Thakur, who had challenged the delay in holding panchayat elections. His counsel, advocate Nandlal Thakur, described the ruling as a significant relief and an important decision for the protection of democratic institutions.

Talking to media the state government had been citing provisions of the Disaster Management Act to defer the elections, a move he argued was contrary to constitutional principles. He said the High Court’s intervention had reaffirmed the primacy of democratic processes.