The Supreme Court on Friday cleared the way for Andhra Pradesh local body elections by upholding the state High Court’s ruling on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process and dismissing petitions filed by the YSR Congress Party and the Andhra Pradesh government.
The YSRCP had asked the Supreme Court to direct that local elections be held only after the SIR process was completed. The court did not accept the issues raised by the party, according to the report. The State Election Commission told the bench that it was ready to issue the election notification within six weeks, in line with the timeline fixed by the Andhra Pradesh High Court.
The Supreme Court also set out how the voter list should be used. If the SIR process is completed before the election notification is issued, the revised voter list will be used. If the revision is not completed by then, the elections can proceed using the existing voter list.
A bench headed by Chief Justice of India Justice Surya Kant upheld the High Court’s judgment. The Supreme Court observed that obstructing the conduct of elections amounted to obstructing public interest. The ruling removes the immediate legal hurdle over whether the voter-roll revision must precede the local election process.
The court also dismissed an appeal filed by the Andhra Pradesh government against the High Court order that struck down two government orders providing 34 per cent reservation for backward classes in local body elections. The High Court had held that the quota was contrary to Supreme Court guidelines stating that total reservation should not exceed 50 per cent.
The High Court’s order, issued on October 1, had directed the state government and the State Election Commission to begin the election process within six weeks. A bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and Sheel Nagu had described the order as reasonable and directed the authorities to proceed with the polls.
The ruling affects the institutional process through which Andhra Pradesh’s local governments will be constituted. Municipal and rural local body elections determine representation in bodies responsible for core public functions, including local administration and civic services. The Supreme Court’s directions mean that the election schedule can now move forward without waiting indefinitely for completion of the SIR process.
The next formal step is for the State Election Commission to issue the election notification within the six-week timeline indicated before the Supreme Court. The voter list used for the polls will depend on whether the SIR process is completed before that notification is released.
