"12 years have gone by ....", lamented the Bench.
Whether civic body polls will clash with the timing and related developments vis-a-vis assembly elections due Feb-March 2023 remains to be seen.
New Delhi
In a landmark verdict, the Supreme Court on Friday directed the Nagaland State Election Commission to complete
the elections of the local bodies and municipalities and declare the results by the end of January 2023.
A Bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and M M Sundresh ordered specifically, "We clearly put to them that the
election process has to be completed and the results declared before the end of January 2023".
The poll schedule has to be worked out accordingly, the Bench said.
The apex court maintained categorically that - "You cannot begin the election process after January".
The state election panel, however, said it required approval from the state government.
The counsel for the state tried to assure - "We will hold elections….". To this the bench ventilated its anguish and said, "When? In 2026?" .
The apex court yet again remarked disapproving of the much delay in holding civic polls in Nagaland saying - "12 years have gone by, you have to hold elections….", according to sources.
The Supreme Court had recently blasted the Nagaland government for delaying the
implementation of 33 percent women’s reservations in local bodies and called such approaches “really shameful”.
During Friday's hearing (July 29), at one point the court also remarked -
"You keep on postponing it, how many years have gone by".
 |
| Jotsoma village/Science College, Kohima |
The advocate general K N Balgopal said, "24th Nov is the date for publication of the electoral roll. 25th November, if we start the process for conducting elections, it will go upto 25th January".
This was not acceptable to the court.
The Bench almost rebuked stating that it did not want the state government and state election commission to delay things further.
"....You cannot begin the election process after January", the court was very firm about it.
Advocate General Balgopal requested for more time to complete and declare the results of the elections.
The matter will come up for next hearing for 'reporting compliance' in the second week of February.
It may be mentioned that reservation for women in civic bodies had in Nagaland evoked strong opposition
from sections of the Naga society.
The argument was rather perceived to be 'anti-women' and it was contended that the quota was against customary
laws that are protected under Article 371(A) of the Constitution.
The capital Kohima experienced unprecedented violence over the contentious issue.
A number of government buildings including the Kohima Municipal Council office and Zonal centre were set ablaze
by angry mobs during their violent protest on Feb 3, 2017.
In fiscal 2017-18, Nagaland reportedly lost Rs 140 crore in grants from the Centre allotted
to modernize urban infrastructures as the NPF-led state government then
failed to hold elections to urban local bodies (ULBs).
In the previous hearing on April 12, 2022, the Nagaland state government had, however, informed the court about its
'new resolve' to hold elections to the urban local bodies as per the 74th Amendment Act of the Constitution.
The Supreme Court had also said that “there is now no impediment to holding of the elections providing for reservation for women”.
ends
New Delhi
Pranay Kumar Verma, presently Ambassador of India to Vietnam, has been appointed as the next High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh.
Verma, IFS of 1994 cadre, is expected to take up the assignment shortly, the Ministry of External Affairs announced here on Friday.
The MEA also said that Sandeep Arya, IFS also of 1994 batch, and at present posted as
Additional Secretary in the Ministry will move as the next Ambassador of India to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
ends
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