Guwahati: The Gauhati High Court on Sunday resolved the impasse surrounding rural polls in Assam. The court permitted the Assam government and election authorities to conduct the panchayat elections, excluding areas covered in nine writ petitions under consideration.
These areas are located within Karimganj (Sribhumi), Cachar, Hailakandi, Morigaon, and Darrang districts.
This decision limits the earlier statewide stay order from December 17, 2024, which had temporarily halted Panchayat elections across Assam.
On Sunday, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma expressed concern that conducting panchayat elections in February would coincide with the administration of board examinations, potentially causing disruption.
“Even if the panchayat election is conducted within a month from today, it will create substantial difficulties for board examinees in the state,” Sarma said.
Board examinations commence in mid-Feb in Assam.
“The state board examinations will begin on Feb 14. We will not get counting halls if we proceed with elections in a month. The electoral environment will disrupt students’ studies as well,” he added.
Following the court’s ruling, CM Sarma suggested that panchayat elections are now likely to be held around Rongali Bihu in April.
This significant delay has caused concern among the public and political parties, as the terms of elected panchayat representatives ended in December 2023, leaving these crucial local bodies without proper representation.
The High Court issued a directive to the state government, mandating that all allegations of faulty delimitation be addressed and resolved before any further actions are taken.
“The High Court has stated that only after the government has addressed the allegations will it come to a decision,” said advocate AK Talukdar, legal counsel representing the petitioners.
Talukdar criticized the government for failing to adhere to proper delimitation protocols.
“Delimitation for wards, Gaon Panchayats, Anchalik Panchayats, or Zilla Parishads must be based on Census 2001 population figures. The government must ensure that the population be distributed equally, as far as practicable, across the units during the delimitation process. Unfortunately, the government has not even started working in this direction,” Talukdar said.
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According to Talukdar, several legal professionals are planning to challenge the court’s ruling, citing the government’s non-compliance with Section 3A of the Assam Panchayat Act, 1994, which mandates the formation of district delimitation commissions.
