HP High Court: Illegal panchayat delimitation won't be valid for polls

The HP High Court has declared panchayat delimitation without following statutory procedures as 'patently illegal'. It directed that such changes won't be valid for upcoming polls, which must follow the previous election cycle's boundaries.

The Himachal Pradesh High Court has declared that any delimitation of Gram Panchayats carried out without adherence to statutory procedures is "patently illegal", issuing key directions ahead of the upcoming panchayat elections in the state.

A Division Bench comprising Justice Vivek Singh Thakur and Justice Ranjan Sharma disposed of a batch of petitions, including Mahila Mandal of Village Umri vs State of HP, and stressed strict compliance with the Himachal Pradesh Panchayati Raj Act and Rules, 1994.

Court Mandates Two-Step Reorganisation Process

The Bench underscored that the process of creation, bifurcation and delimitation of Panchayats must follow a two-step mechanism. While the state government is responsible for reorganisation under Section 3 of the Act, the concerned Deputy Commissioner must undertake delimitation of territorial constituencies under Section 124.

Strict Timelines for Delimitation Process

Emphasising the mandatory nature of the procedure, the court observed that the use of the word "shall" in the Election Rules reflects binding legislative intent. It reiterated that Rule 5 requires a seven-day notice period after publication of a delimitation proposal, Rule 6 provides seven days for disposal of objections by the Deputy Commissioner, and Rule 10 allows a ten-day window for appeal before the Divisional Commissioner, who must decide within 15 days.

Ruling's Impact on Forthcoming Panchayat Polls

The court ruled that any delimitation exercise carried out after February 13 without following these procedures will not be valid for the forthcoming elections. In such cases, elections are to be conducted based on Panchayat boundaries and status as they existed during the previous election cycle.

Clarifying further, the Bench stated that even where Panchayat reorganisation is otherwise valid, failure to comply with delimitation norms would defer its implementation to the next election cycle. Only those reorganisations notified before February 13 and completed in accordance with the rules will be considered for the current election roster.

Court Orders Finalisation of Election Schedule

Taking note of the urgency of the election schedule, the court directed the state government to finalise and publish the election roster by April 7. It also ordered that the entire election process be completed within the timeline laid down by the Supreme Court in the Principal Secretary vs. Dikken Kumar Thakur case.

The Bench, however, kept certain issues relating to the validity of specific reorganisations open for future adjudication.

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