Telangana HC tells state government to explain delay in Nirmal civic polls
HYDERABAD: The Telangana High Court questioned the state government over the delay in conducting municipal elections, particularly for the Nirmal Municipality, where the governing body's term ended on March 25. The court has directed the government to submit complete details regarding the delay and has scheduled the next hearing for July 11.
The matter came up for hearing before Justice B Vijaysen Reddy on Friday, following a petition filed by Samundar Pelli Rajender, an agriculturist from Natarajnagar in Nirmal. The petitioner challenged the inaction of the state government and the State Election Commission (SEC), arguing that the continued delay in holding elections is illegal and unconstitutional.
Senior advocate Prabhakar, representing the petitioner, argued that the failure to hold timely elections violates Articles 243U and 243ZA of the Constitution, as well as provisions of the Telangana Municipalities Act, 2019. He urged the court to direct the authorities to initiate the election process without further delay.
In response, senior advocate Vidyasagar, representing the SEC, said the commission is preparing to begin the election process but needs to complete necessary procedures such as ward reservations.
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