Rajasthan: SEC blames govt for local body polls delay, HC seeks schedule

The Bhajan Lal Sharma government, already facing contempt proceedings in the Rajasthan High Court for failing to comply with its order to complete panchayat and urban local body elections by 31 July, suffered another setback this week when the State Election Commission (SEC) blamed the government for the delay.

The SEC, an autonomous constitutional body responsible for conducting elections, told the high court that it had been unable to announce the election schedule because the state government had not provided the reservation lists for Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), Other Backward Classes (OBCs), and women for panchayats and urban local bodies.

The high court was hearing the state government's plea seeking an extension of the 31 July deadline that it had earlier fixed for completing the elections.

A division bench comprising acting Chief Justice S.P. Sharma and Justice Sanjit Purohit expressed strong displeasure over the delay and directed the state government and the SEC to submit a clear election schedule by 20 July.

The high court directed both sides to mutually decide the timeline for submission of the reservation report. It observed that once the reservation process and ward-wise lottery were completed, the SEC should immediately announce the election schedule.

In compliance with the court's earlier orders, SEC commissioner Rajeshwar Singh and the secretary of the OBC Commission appeared before the court through video conferencing.

During the hearing, the bench questioned the SEC over earlier delays in announcing election schedules and asked why action should not be initiated against the commission for failing to adhere to judicial directions. In response, the SEC filed an affidavit stating that the delay was entirely due to the state government's failure to provide the reservation classification, particularly for OBCs.

Rajeshwar Singh told the high court that the SEC could conduct elections only after receiving the final reservation lists from the state government. "The SEC conducts elections on the basis of reservation lists prepared by the government for SCs, STs, OBCs and women. In the absence of these lists, we cannot proceed with the election process," he submitted.

The reservation exercise, including the lottery for reserved wards, is carried out by the state's local self-government department and panchayati raj department.

The SEC commissioner also informed the bench that the commission had repeatedly reminded the government about the pending reservation lists through at least half a dozen letters. It had also warned the government that failure to complete the exercise could invite contempt proceedings. However, he said, the government had not responded.

"We are fully prepared to conduct the elections. The electoral rolls have been finalised and electronic voting machines have been procured. But the government has yet to finalise the reservation lists for wards as well as the posts of chairpersons in municipalities and municipal corporations reserved for SCs, STs and OBCs," Singh said.

The SEC further informed the high court that the OBC Commission was still conducting its survey and had indicated that it would submit its report by 14 August. Only thereafter could the lottery for reserved wards be conducted, with the state government expected to complete that process by 21 August.

The high court sharply criticised the state government for failing to adhere to its direction to complete the election process by 31 July. The bench expressed surprise that despite the high court's deadline, the OBC Commission had continued its survey and fixed 14 August for submitting its report.

"If the state government is unable to conduct the elections on time, the high court may appoint a judge to supervise the process," Chief Justice Sharma remarked.

The Bhajan Lal government has defended the delay by citing the pending OBC Commission report. The Commission was originally appointed for three months, but more than a year later, is yet to submit its recommendations.

The SEC also informed the court that it would require at least 90 days after receiving the reservation lists to complete preparations for the elections, making it impossible to meet the present deadline.

The Opposition Congress seized on the SEC's stand to attack the BJP government. Former chief minister Ashok Gehlot, Leader of Opposition Tika Ram Jully, Pradesh Congress Committee chief Govind Singh Dotasra and senior leader Sachin Pilot alleged that the government was deliberately delaying the elections because it feared defeat in both the panchayat and urban local body polls, which they said would hurt the BJP ahead of the 2028 Assembly elections.