HC issues notice to Siddaramaiah govt on gram panchayat seats reservation issue

Bengaluru, Nov 12 The Divisional bench headed by Chief Justice Vibhu Bhakru and Justice C.M. Poonacha issued notice on Wednesday to the Congress-led government in Karnataka and directed it to finalise reservations concerning the 5,950 Gram Panchayats (GPs) whose terms will expire by January 2026.

The bench issued the notice while looking into the petition of the State Election Commission (SEC).

The SEC sought immediate direction and action from the state government with regard to issuing final nominations for the reservation of seats under Section 5 (5) of the Karnataka Gram Swaraj and Panchayat Raj Act, 1993.

The court has also asked the state government to take the matter seriously and file objections in two weeks.

Niloufer Akbar, the counsel representing the government, submitted to the court that the petition is about the office that will become vacant in January 2026. Since the vacancy is in the future, the counsel asked the court to give one week to consult with the government and get further instructions on how to proceed.

The court observed that if the state government doesn’t act quickly and publish the reservation details for panchayat seats, local body elections will be delayed, and the government will have to appoint administrators to manage those bodies -- something the court clearly wants to avoid.

The bench further stated that the state government needs to plan ahead and not wait until the last minute. The petition has said that about 5,000 positions in the panchayats are going to become vacant soon, and elections need to be held to fill them.

However, elections can’t be held until the government issues the reservation list. Since the reservation details have not yet been issued, the Election Commission cannot issue election notices, the bench stated.

The court posted the matter to December 11.

It can be noted that the State Election Commission has approached the High Court with regard to conducting local body elections of Zilla Panchayat and Taluk Panchayats.

It may be noted that, however, the State Election Commission (SEC) and the govt have begun preparing for gram panchayat (GP) elections, with the five-year terms of over 5,950 GPs set to end between December 2025 and January 2026.

The commissioner, Karnataka Panchayat Raj Commissionerate, had written to CEOs of all 31 zilla panchayats, directing them to submit lists of GPs whose terms are expiring.

The previous local body elections were conducted in two phases on December 22 and 27, 2020, covering over 5,950 GPs and nearly 93,000 wards.

It can also be noted that some MLCs, who were elected from local bodies, have proposed the use of party symbols in GP elections. In response, RDPR minister Priyank Kharge had informed the council during the monsoon session that the government had formed a committee to examine the matter.

However, in September, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah rejected the proposal, describing it as a "bad idea" that could lead to political groupism in villages and disrupt harmony at the grassroots.

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