The Supreme Court on Monday (May 25) refused to entertain a plea challenging the Punjab State Election Commission's decision to hold the polls for municipal corporations, municipal councils, and nagar panchayats through ballot papers.
'No time left': Supreme Court
A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi questioned petitioner Ruchita Garg over approaching the court at a late stage and observed that the court could not destabilise the election process at this point.
"Elections are tomorrow, what can be done now? There is no time left," the bench said.
"There was no need for you to wait for the formal notification of the election schedule being issued. You knew that elections are to be held. There have been several rounds of litigations earlier," the bench said.
Court refuses to appoint observer
The apex court also refused to appoint an observer in the elections and said it a very serious interdiction and we will not do it.
The counsel appearing for the petitioner submitted that elections are sought be conducted by ballot papers and referred to the top court's judgement in ADR case which said EVMs have to be the norm.
The top court was hearing a plea against an order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court which dismissed Garg's plea challenging decision of the State Election Commission to switch from Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) to ballot papers in the upcoming Punjab local body polls.
Polling for 104 municipal bodies, including eight municipal corporations in Punjab, will be held on May 26. The counting of votes will take place on May 29.
The SEC had earlier told the high court that the local body polls were being conducted through ballot papers as the EC failed to provide EVMs according to the schedule decided by it. The state counsel had opposed the petition on the grounds of maintainability.
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