Patiala, October 7 (Daily Kiran) : The Supreme Court of India has ruled that re-elections will be held for 50 municipal wards in Punjab, specifically in Patiala and Moga districts. This decision comes in response to complaints regarding irregularities during the nomination process for the municipal elections held in December 2024.
The court’s directive affects 28 wards of the Patiala Municipal Corporation and 22 wards from the municipal councils of Bagha Purana and Dharmkot in Moga district. The court’s decision was influenced by findings from a fact-finding commission led by former Punjab and Haryana High Court judge Nirmaljeet Kaur, which investigated the complaints of interference in the nomination process.
As a result of the Supreme Court’s ruling, the election process for the Patiala wards has been annulled, and new voting will also take place in all 15 wards of the Bagha Purana council and the seven wards of the Dharmkot council. The commission’s report indicated that the electoral process in these areas had been compromised, preventing candidates from submitting their nominations.
To ensure transparency in the re-election process, the Supreme Court has mandated judicial oversight. This includes a requirement for videography of the entire electoral process, from nominations to voting. A monitoring committee, chaired by a retired High Court judge, will oversee this procedure.
The court emphasized that the re-election process must be completed within six weeks. It clarified that this directive is specific to the unique circumstances of these cases and should not be viewed as a precedent for future by-elections.
The controversy arose after several candidates alleged they were obstructed from filing their nominations, leading to the matter being escalated to the Punjab and Haryana High Court, and subsequently to the Supreme Court. In March 2025, the Supreme Court agreed to establish a fact-finding commission to investigate the disputed facts surrounding the case.
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