The Punjab and Haryana High Court resolved a dispute over Chandigarh’s Mayor election, providing directives for transparency. The court clarified that the plea became irrelevant with a new election schedule. The Supreme Court recently invalidated a past election result due to ballot defacement.
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Chandigarh: On Tuesday, The Punjab and Haryana High Court speedy addressed the controversy surrounding the election process for the Senior Deputy Mayor and Deputy Mayor in Chandigarh, disposing of a plea that challenged a meeting called by the Deputy Commissioner (DC). This meeting allegedly violated the Supreme Court’s ruling in the Mayor election case. Following the issuance of a new notification by the DC for a fresh election process, the court provided significant directives.
“In view of the undertaking given on behalf of respondent No.10 (Kuldeep Kumar), the newly elected Mayor, shall assume the charge of his Office by 10 a.m. tomorrow i.e. 28.02.2024 at the Office of Municipal Corporation, Chandigarh,”
-stated a division bench of Justice Sudhir Singh and Justice Harsh Bunger.
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The court outlined several directives, including ensuring the association of the newly elected Mayor with the conduct of the elections and the videography of the entire election process by the authorities. The judges also emphasized that councilors participating in the elections should not be accompanied by supporters or security personnel from other states. The Chandigarh Police was instructed to provide adequate security to councilors, considering their lack of external security, and to prevent any disturbances during the election process.
The dispute arose when Congress councilors Gurpreet Singh and Nirmala Devi contested the validity of the earlier nominations and withdrawals, citing the Supreme Court’s order declaring Kuldeep Kumar as the Mayor. They argued that fresh elections for Senior Deputy Mayor and Deputy Mayor were necessary and challenged the DC’s notification as-
“arbitrary and against the provisions of Chandigarh Municipal Corporation (Procedure and Conduct of Business) Regulations, 1996.”
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The court clarified that the relief sought in the writ petition became irrelevant due to three reasons: the newly elected Mayor had not assumed office, the scheduled elections could not be held, and a fresh notice was issued by the DC for conducting new elections. The court disposed of the petition with the consent of all concerned parties, highlighting that it should not set a precedent for the interpretation of the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation Regulations.
“The question of legality of the aforesaid 1996 Regulations is kept open to be considered in an appropriate case,”
-the court concluded.
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The Supreme Court recently invalidated the results of the January 30, 2024, election, declaring BJP candidate Manoj Kumar Sonkar‘s victory as illegal. The court found that the Presiding Officer deliberately defaced eight ballots cast in favor of Kuldeep Kumar, rendering them invalid.