Delimitation process for Haridwar panchayat polls suspended after Cong objection

By Arun Pratap Singh
Dehradun, 22 Feb: The process of delimiting reservation of seats for three-tier panchayats in Haridwar district has been stopped for the present after an objection registered by the Congress. It may be recalled that, as per the notification issued by the District Magistrate, the process of reserving seats for the three tier Panchayat poll in Haridwar district had begun after the polling for the assembly polls held on 14 February. However, Congress leaders had expressed serious objections to the process, claiming that it ought to begin under the next elected government after announcement of results. The present government did not have any right to take policy decisions after the polls. Congress registered its objection before the State Election Commission in this regard.
It may be recalled that Panchayat polls in district Haridwar are held separately from the panchayat polls held in the rest of the state as they had been stayed in the past owing to certain objections regarding reservation.
The tenure of panchayats in Haridwar district ended on 28 March, 2021. Since then, the ADO, Panchayat, has been appointed as Administrator. There are 306 Gram Panchayats, 47 Zilla Panchayats and 221 Kshetra Panchayat posts in the district. In the midst of the ongoing assembly elections in the state, on the orders of the government, District Magistrate, Haridwar, started the process of reservation and delimitation of the three-tier panchayat. The Congress party immediately opposed the notification. On Monday, too, a Congress delegation led by PCC President Ganesh Godiyal had met the Joint Chief Electoral Officer in this regard. Godiyal complained to the Election Commission and said that, in view of the Panchayat elections to be held in Haridwar district, instructions had been issued from the government level to start the process of delimitation and reservation even as the new government had not been elected in the state and the model code of conduct for the assembly elections in the state was still in force. He said that such action in Haridwar district was a clear violation of the Model Code of Conduct and demanded an immediate stop to the process.
Joint Chief Electoral Officer Pratap Shah apprised the delegation that instructions had been given to adjourn the proceeding in this matter.