Pune: PIL Filed in Supreme Court to Compel Maharashtra Local Body Elections

New Delhi/Pune, 4th January 2025: A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking directions to the Maharashtra State Election Commission to immediately conduct overdue local body elections. The petition, filed by Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat through their Pune Region President Vijay Sagar, challenges the delay in holding Municipal Corporation elections across the state.

The PIL was filed on 3rd January 2025, by Advocate Satya Muley. It also contests the legitimacy of the 2022 amendment to the Maharashtra Municipal Corporation Act, which transferred the power of ward delimitation from the Maharashtra State Election Commission to the Maharashtra State Government.

Adv Muley argues that the prolonged delay in conducting local body elections violates Articles 14, 21, and 243 U of the Constitution. He emphasizes that this inaction undermines participatory democracy and effective local governance.

The petition highlights that elections for various Municipal Corporations in Maharashtra are overdue by over four years, violating the constitutional mandate under Article 243 U. This provision requires local body elections to be held before the expiration of their five-year term.

The PIL references several key Supreme Court judgments, including the 2006 Kishansing Tomar case, which stressed the necessity of timely and regular local body elections. It also cites the 2021 Vikas Kishanrao Gawali case, which established the “Triple Test” for prescribing reservations for Backward Classes in local bodies.

The controversy surrounding Other Backward Class (OBC) Reservations in local body elections is a central issue. In 2021, the Supreme Court directed that elections should not proceed based on proposed OBC reservations without fulfilling the Triple Test criteria. These criteria include setting up a commission for empirical inquiry, specifying local body-wise reservations, and ensuring total reservations do not exceed 50%.

Muley contends that the Maharashtra State Government has failed to establish a dedicated commission to conduct the required empirical inquiry into backwardness, as mandated by the Supreme Court in 2021.

Regarding ward delimitation, the PIL argues that the process should continue for future elections, but the overdue elections must proceed based on the delimitation that existed before the 2022 amendment.

The petition names the State of Maharashtra, Law and Judiciary Department, the Chief Secretary and the Maharashtra State Election Commission as respondents.

Vijay Sagar of Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat stated that their organization has received numerous complaints about civic issues from residents of various Municipal Corporations. He cited problems such as water scarcity, deteriorating infrastructure, and alleged corruption, attributing these issues to the absence of elected representatives.

Advocate Muley emphasized that the substitution of elected representatives with bureaucratic authorities due to delayed elections violates the constitutional mandate. He argued that it is unconstitutional to delay local body elections on grounds of ongoing delimitation or reservation exercises, given previous Supreme Court observations.

The petitioners are seeking urgent judicial intervention to compel the State Election Commission to hold all overdue local body elections, aiming to restore accountability and ensure effective governance at the grassroots level in Maharashtra.