The Uttarakhand High Court has pulled up senior officials of the Bageshwar Municipal Corporation for allegedly defying its orders in a long-running dispute over who should serve as the acting executive officer (EO) of the civic body.
A single bench of Justice Ravindra Maithani has issued contempt notices to municipal council chairman Suresh Khetwal and chief assistant Vijay Singh Kanwasi, directing them to explain why action should not be taken against them for non-compliance.
Bageshwar resident Hayat Singh Parihar approached the court with a contempt plea, stating that the state government appointed him as acting EO on September 17, 2025. He took charge the next day, but his financial powers were allegedly withheld by the council chairman for nearly three weeks.
According to Parihar, matters escalated when the government issued another order appointing a different officer in his place and transferring him to Haldwani Municipal Corporation. He challenged both orders, prompting the High Court to stay the new appointment.
After the stay, the state government withdrew the fresh appointment and Parihar’s transfer on October 14, telling the court it had begun the process to select a regular EO. The earlier petition was then disposed of.
However, barely three days later, on October 17, the Bageshwar Municipal Corporation passed a resolution naming Vijay Singh Kanwasi as acting EO, bypassing Parihar once more.
Parihar challenged this move as well, leading the High Court to stay the municipality’s decision on October 31. Despite this, he alleged that he was still prevented from functioning as acting EO, prompting him to initiate contempt proceedings.
Taking note of the allegations, Justice Maithani has now sought responses from both Khetwal and Kanwasi. They have been directed to appear and present their defence before the court.
The matter will be taken up next by the High Court, which will decide whether the officials’ actions amounted to wilful defiance of judicial orders.
