The Punjab and Haryana High Court Saturday asked the Chandigarh administration to consider rescheduling of the mayoral polls while taking up a petition challenging the order of postponing elections to February 6.
The division bench of Justices Sudhir Singh and Harsh Bunger also issued notices to the Union Territory administration, Chandigarh Municipal Corporation and police for filling their replies on January 23.
The matter came up for hearing on the petition filed by AAP councillor Kuldeep Kumar, who had challenged the UT administration’s order of postponing the mayoral polls to February 6.
Advocate Ferry Sofat, one of the counsels for the petitioner, said during the hearing, the court asked the Chandigarh administration to consider rescheduling of the polls.
The court orally asked the UT administration to come up with a next date for holding the mayoral polls between January 23 and January 26, said Sofat.
Sofat further said when the counsel for the Chandigarh administration mentioned the law and order issue for deferring the polls, the court suggested if the Chandigarh police could not handle the law and order for the mayoral polls, then a central agency can be roped in.
During the hearing, the court was apprised about the programmes taking place in the city in the wake of the consecration ceremony at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya on January 22 by the counsel for the administration.
Thereafter, police would be busy in the arrangement of the Republic Day celebrations, it was also submitted.
The petitioner’s counsel during the hearing submitted that the Chandigarh Deputy Commissioner has no authority to defer the polls.
Senior advocate Chetan Mittal, representing the Municipal Corporation, however contended that the DC, who is the prescribed authority, has the power to postpone the elections.
Petitioner Kumar, who was the candidate for the mayor post, had sought that the January 18 order of the DC be set aside and elections should be conducted forthwith.
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On Thursday, the AAP had moved the high court after the Chandigarh mayoral polls were abruptly postponed with councillors being told that the presiding officer had fallen ill.
During the hearing Thursday evening, the counsel for the Chandigarh administration had informed the high court that February 6 had been fixed as the next date for the mayoral polls after assessing the law and order situation.
The petitioner had also sought quashing the order of the municipal corporation authorities restricting the entry of councillors in the MC premises.
The petitioner had demanded holding of the mayoral polls in a fair and free manner.
The mayoral polls, which were slated to take place on Thursday, were deferred till further orders after presiding officer Anil Masih fell sick.
The Congress and the AAP, which have joined hands for the mayoral polls, have slammed the BJP, accusing it of not deferring elections apprehending its “imminent defeat”.
