Jharkhand high court upholds order to notify civic polls, setback for Soren Govt

The Jharkhand High Court upheld the order of a single bench that directed the issuance of a notification for Municipal Corporation and Municipal Body elections within three weeks. The court also dismissed the appeal petition filed by the state government challenging this order. The division bench, consisting of Acting Chief Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad and Justice Arun Kumar Rai, ruled that there was no illegality in the single bench's decision that required interference.

The original order was given by the High Court’s single bench on January 4, 2024, instructing the state government to issue a notification within three weeks for conducting civic elections. The state government, however, challenged this ruling, citing the ongoing process of assessing the population of backward classes, being conducted by the Jharkhand State Backward Commission.

The court had reserved its decision on August 28 after hearing arguments from both parties. During the hearing, Additional Advocate General Sachin Kumar and Advocate Gaurav Raj, representing the state government, argued that the elections should be delayed until the completion of the "triple test" for assessing backward class populations. They requested the court to cancel the single bench’s order.

On the other hand, Advocate Vinod Singh, representing respondent Roshni Khalkho, cited various Supreme Court rulings and argued that the state government was delaying the elections unnecessarily, violating constitutional norms by postponing elections on the grounds of the triple test.

In its final ruling, the division bench highlighted that local self-governance is enshrined in the 74th amendment of the Constitution. The court emphasized that elections are fundamental to a democratic system and stressed that delaying these elections undermines the essence of democracy.