JAIPUR: The Rajasthan High Court expressed strong displeasure on Monday over the state government’s failure to conduct Panchayat and Urban Local Body elections within the stipulated time and over its plea seeking further postponement of the polls.
The hearing was held on petitions filed by the state government and the State Election Commission seeking more time to conduct the Panchayat and local body elections.
Appearing for the government, Advocate General Rajendra Prasad informed the court that two separate High Court orders related to internal ward delimitation for local body elections had affected the overall process and delayed the polls.
During the hearing, the division bench of Acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma and Justice Sanjit Purohit made sharp oral observations, remarking that the government’s approach was unjustified and reflected a lack of seriousness toward its constitutional obligations.
The bench questioned why the Panchayat elections were not conducted on time when the court orders pertained only to urban local bodies.
In response, the Advocate General submitted that the elections could not be held due to the pending report of the OBC Commission regarding reservation issues.
He informed the court that the government had constituted the OBC Commission on May 9, 2025, but the Commission repeatedly sought extensions to submit its report, leading to an extension of its tenure as well.
The bench made a strong remark, stating that the court itself did not have clear information about what the OBC Commission was doing, and directions could also have been issued to it.
During the hearing, the courtroom saw sharp exchanges when the government cited weather conditions as a reason for delaying the elections.
Advocate General Rajendra Prasad argued that June brings extreme heat and heatwave conditions, making it difficult to conduct polls.
The bench dismissed the argument, remarking, “This is no reason. People in Rajasthan know how to deal with the heat.
”When the government said candidates would face difficulties in campaigning, the court replied, “They will get enough time.”
On the possibility of monsoon disruptions in July, the bench sarcastically observed, “Rain in Rajasthan?”, indicating that weather could not be used as a ground to delay the democratic process.
After completion of the hearing, the division bench reserved its order.
The controversy stems from the Rajasthan High Court’s November 14, 2025, judgment on 439 petitions, in which the court directed the state government to complete the delimitation process by December 31, 2025, and conduct Panchayat and Municipal elections by April 15, 2026.
The Supreme Court, while hearing several petitions challenging the order, had also upheld the timeline and directed the state to hold elections within the same deadline.
Despite these court directions, both the state government and the Election Commission later moved the court seeking additional time to conduct the polls, drawing criticism from the judiciary.
Meanwhile, former MLAs Sanyam Lodha and Girraj Devanda have filed a contempt petition against the Election Commission, demanding action for alleged non-compliance with court orders. The High Court is scheduled to hear the matter on May 18.