DELIMITATION EXERCISE
By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Dec 28: The High Court of Meghalaya on Thursday allowed a petitioner to serve a notice to the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC) and the state government to list the case within four weeks.
Dominic Warjri filed a petition questioning the “illegal action” of the KHADC’s Executive Committee (EC) in constituting the Delimitation Committee to determine the boundaries of the 29 constituencies under its jurisdiction.
Justice Wanlura Diengdoh heard a prayer made by K Paul, a senior counsel who appeared for the petitioner seeking steps for issuance of notice to the respondents, including the KHADC and the state government.
“As prayed for, the same is allowed. Let notice be issued, the same is returnable within four weeks. List the matter after vacation,” Justice Diengdoh said in the order.
Senior advocate VGK Kynta, the special counsel for the KHADC, said the matter was not heard on the grounds of non-serving of formal notice by the writ petitioner upon the KHADC. He declined to say anything more as the matter is pending in the court.
The petitioner stated that the EC, through a notification on October 20, decided to re-examine and scrutinise the delimitation of the constituencies for the (Member of District Council) MDC elections.
According to him, the EC issued another notification on November 15 inviting the electorate/ public of the constituencies to file written representation/ objection/ petitions/ views and comments on the proposed Delimitation Bill.
Warjri also stated that dates were fixed for public hearings and notified in the leading local dailies.
He said the delimitation exercise is being carried out by the EC without following the mandatory procedures as postulated in the Constitution of India and the instructions given by the Department of District Council Affairs (DCA) through a letter issued on October 28, 2013.
“That being aggrieved by the illegal action being undertaken by the respondent authorities in delimiting the constituencies, without following the mandate of law, the petitioner herein has approached this court for judicial interference,” he stated.
The EC’s terms of responsibility include creating its guidelines for conducting business, making the proposed delimitation law available to the public, reviewing and addressing public representations, submissions, opinions, and comments, among other things, and holding hearings at designated places.
The committee shall submit the report at the earliest, the notification stated.
The KHADC’s Deputy Chief Executive Member, PN Syiem had said that the committee was established after the council received more than 15 petitions from villages asking it to move their villages to other constituencies.
In response to a question regarding the criteria for reorganising different communities, Syiem said the committee would ultimately determine the criteria to be based on the population and topography of such settlements.
The KHADC had submitted to the DCA Department a proposal for the delimitation of the council’s constituencies.
The tenure of the current House will end on March 5 next year.
Syiem said the goal is to rationalise the number of voters and that the suggestion is for the adjustment of Mawlai and other large constituencies, but the number of constituencies will stay the same.