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Hindustan Times
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Himachal: State election commission pulls up state for postponement of reservation roster
The Himachal Pradesh state election commission (SEC) has pulled up state government over the postponement of Urban Local Body (ULB) election reservation roster and has asked the state to immediately withdraw the order. The elections in all the municipal bodies in Himachal Pradesh except Shimla municipal corporation, are scheduled to be held this year. (File) In a letter written to chief secretary, the state election commission has asserted that the urban development department has no legal mandate to alter a schedule issued by a constitutional authority. The letter of the SEC came on Thursday, hours after the state's urban development department issued a letter postponing the finalisation of the ULB reservation roster due to the non-availability of updated Census data. The elections in all the municipal bodies in the state except Shimla municipal corporation, are scheduled to be held this year. These elections are to be held in 7 MC's , 29 municipal councils and 37 nagar panchayats apart from this elections are also to be held in more than 3,600 panchayats. For the municipal elections, the election commission released the schedule for deciding the ward division, delimitation, reservation roster 2 months ago. According to this, reservation of all the wards has to be done by Friday, July 11. Complete information of the reserved wards has to be given to the Election Commission by July 15. On Thursday, the Himachal government directed a postponement of the reservation process for ULBs due to absence of updated demographic data from the delayed national Census. In an order dated July 10, 2025, the Principal Secretary (Urban Development) communicated to all deputy commissioners — except those of Lahaul-Spiti and Kinnaur — that 'due to the non-availability of latest data about the actual numbers of electors of Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and Other Backward Classes (OBC) communities, resulting from the delay in the Census the implementation/finalization by issuance of the reservation roster for the ULBs elections shall be postponed until the latest Census data becomes available.' The order, signed by special secretary (Urban Development) Saurabh Jassal, had instructed that no reservation notifications be issued or implemented 'until such time as the updated Census data is officially released.' Copies of the letter were marked to the secretary, state election commission and director, urban development. However, the SEC has now firmly rejected this move, reasserting its sole constitutional authority over election-related processes, including delimitation and seat reservation. In its letter dated July 10, 2025, the SEC said, 'Your kind attention is invited towards clause (g) of Article 243 P of the Constitution of India read with Section 2(31) of the Himachal Pradesh Municipal Act, 1994, and Section 2(38) of the Himachal Pradesh Municipal Corporation Act, 1994, which in unambiguous terms provides that 'population as ascertained at the last preceding census of which the relevant figures have been published' shall be used for the reservation purpose.'
Indian Express
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Action taken in review meeting on Jan Samvad portal and Haryana CM Window complaints; executive engineer suspended
The Haryana government has started taking action against officials found responsible for delay in acting on the complaints received on the Jan Samvad portal and CM window. In a meeting chaired by Dr Saket Kumar, Additional Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister, an executive engineer was Friday placed under suspension. 'During the meeting, officials took note of a case where several instalments under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) in urban areas were pending due to a lack of inspections by Urban Local Body (ULB) officials. Taking serious note of the issue, Dr Saket Kumar directed the department to submit the list of pending beneficiaries and ensure the prompt disbursement of payments. Orders were issued to suspend the executive engineer posted at the department's headquarters after a significant number of unresolved complaints were found in the ULB Department,' a government spokesperson said. In the meeting, a complaint from Tikri village of Karnal district came up for discussion. It involved the wrongful inclusion of an unknown woman's name in the Parivar Pehchan Patra (PPP) – the document that is required in Haryana to avail social security benefits. It was found that despite repeated efforts by the complainant, Sushil Kumar, who alleged that a woman's name was wrongly entered in his family ID card, no corrective measures were taken. 'Taking cognizance of this serious administrative lapse, directions were issued to fix responsibility, take disciplinary action against the guilty official, and also register an FIR,' the government spokesperson added. The additional deputy commissioners (ADCs) of all districts were also directed to ensure the resolution of all pending cases within a week. Additionally, a formal advisory has been issued, stating that 'any negligence in addressing complaints related to the Jan Samvad portal and CM Window will not be tolerated.' 'During the meeting, while reviewing the tenders for development works, instructions were given to quickly assess the feasibility of all pending proposals and prepare rough estimates. The tender process is to commence immediately after obtaining administrative approval. A case related to Shahabad, in which a No Due Certificate (NOC) was issued for a colony in an incorrect manner, has been recommended to the Vigilance Branch of the Chief Secretary's Office for investigation. Additionally, orders were issued to issue a charge sheet against the municipal engineer found guilty at the initial stage of the investigation,' the government spokesperson said. Friday's meeting was attended by senior officials from the ULB Department and the Citizen Resource Information Department (CRID), along with the chief minister's officers on special duty, Vivek Kalia and Rakesh Sandhu. 'Applications received directly by the chief minister during his visits or during public hearings held at Sant Kabir Kutir (Haryana CM's residence in Chandigarh) are uploaded to the Jan Samvad portal. The progress of these cases is personally reviewed by the chief minister on a weekly basis,' Kalia said.
