NE NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, DECEMBER 5
The Supreme Court has directed the State Election Commission to conduct the much-delayed local body elections except in the nine bifurcated districts in Tamil Nadu.
Hearing the petition filed by the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam to nullify the election citing that delimitation of wards in the newly bifurcated districts, a division bench of the Apex Court questioned the SEC on how they can conduct elections without conducting a proper delimitation.
The bench also directed the SEC to submit whether they can order postponement of local body elections for the bifurcated districts – Tirunelveli, Tenkasi, Villupuram, Kallakkurichi, Vellore, Tirupattur, Ranipettai, Kanchipuram and Chengalpattu.
A bench headed by Chief Justice of India SA Bobde took note of the submissions made by advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for the DMK. The counsel urged the top court to hear the petition urgently as the schedule for elections had been announced. Singhvi said the poll process had been set in motion “without concluding the legal formalities” with regard to the delimitation exercise and reservation aspects, taking into consideration the five new districts carved out in Tamil Nadu.
In the meantime, the apex court has postponed the DMK’s demand to nullify the local body election to December 19.
The Supreme Court had on Monday agreed to hear the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam’s plea seeking a direction to the Election Commission to carry out the delimitation exercise in newly created districts in Tamil Nadu before conducting panchayat and local body elections, PTI reported.
Earlier on the same day, the state Election Commission announced that local body polls in Tamil Nadu will be held in two phases on December 27 and December 30. The counting of votes will take place on January 2, 2020.
