AMC to declare social reservation of wards in two minds!

Aurangabad, Aug 4:

The Aurangabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has landed into two minds as the state cabinet meeting stayed the increase of members in the municipal corporations, but it has not received any official order from the State Election Commission (SEC). Hence, the AMC is enforced to conduct the function of declaring reservation of wards for 50 per cent of women candidates belonging to different categories in confusion, tomorrow.

Acting upon the orders of the then state government, the AMC delimited 115 wards into 126 wards and further divided them into 42 prabhags. The AMC will be conducting its general elections for the first time based on prabhags (one prabhag-multiple member). Each prabhag comprises three wards. Hence, considering 126 wards, it would be declaring reservation of 63 wards (50 per cent) for women candidates belonging to Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe, Other Backward Class and General (Open) etc.

The draw will be declared tomorrow in Sant Eknath Rangmandir at 11 am. The AMC conducted the rehearsal in this regard on Wednesday.

The AMC deputy commissioner and head of the election branch Santosh Tengale said, “The AMC has not received any orders relating to the decision taken in the cabinet meeting on Wednesday. Hence, we have made adequate arrangements to conduct the draw and declare social reservations of wards as per approved prabhags tomorrow (August 5).”

“The cabinet has decided to conduct the municipal corporation elections as per the old prabhag system in 2017. No order in this regard was issued till Thursday evening. The AMC has not received any government resolution or notification stating to implement the decision. Besides, the SEC has also not issued an order refraining AMC from conducting tomorrow’s draw,” said the AMC election branch sources.

“ If the AMC receives the stay order till Friday morning, then only the AMC would not conduct the programme tomorrow or else it will be conducted as per schedule,” said Tengale.

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When contacted the SEC secretary, Kiran Kurundkar, said,” We have not yet received the order from the cabinet meeting till today. We will alert the municipal corporations only after receiving the order.”