PUDUCHERRY: After 15 years, Puducherry will conduct local body elections. Addressing reporters on Wednesday, State Election Commissioner (SEC), Roy P Thomas, said the polls will be held in three phases on October 21, 25, and 28. The counting is scheduled to take place on October 31. With this announcement, the model code of conduct comes into immediate effect in the Union Territory (UT), the commissioner said.
The last local body polls in Puducherry were held in 2006. This was the second such poll in the UT, the first one being in 1968. The lack of will among political parties seems to have led to the long gap in holding these elections.
The general perception is that the MLAs do not want to share power as the constituencies are small in size. Hence, if there are elected representatives at the local bodies, the MLAs not only lose their prominence, but there is also scope for political conflict if the councillors are from Opposition parties.
After 2011, there was a delay in appointing an SEC, owing to a long tussle between the former Lieutenant Governor Kiran Bedi and former Chief Minister V Narayanasamy. However, even after appointing the SEC, the dilly-dallying continued as the government delayed completion of the delimitation exercise.
It was only after the Supreme Court, in April 2021, gave directions to the Puducherry government to complete the delimitation exercise within two months and hold elections within four months, the ball was set rolling.
RLB polls to fill 1,149 posts in Puducherry
Candidates will contest for a total of 1,149 posts – five municipal chairperson posts, 116 municipal ward councillors, 108 commune panchayat ward councillors, 108 village panchayat presidents, and 812 village panchayat ward members. The filing of nominations will start from September 30 for the first phase, and October 4 and 7, for the second and third phases, respectively.
In order to restrict overcrowding, as well as to facilitate Covid patients in filing nominations, an online facility is also being provided, the SEC said. Municipalities of Karaikal, Mahe, and Yanam, along with the five commune panchayats in Karaikal – Kotucherry, Nedungadu, Neravy, Thirumalairayanpattinam, and Thirunallar – will go to polls in the first phase, on October 21.
Puducherry and Oulgaret municipalities will go to polls in the second phase, on October 25, and in the last phase, on October 28, Ariyankuppam, Bahour, Mannadipet, Nettapakkam, and Villianur commune panchayats will head to polls. Meanwhile, the SEC said it would file a condonation petition in the Supreme Court since there was a delay of about 26 days from the deadline of October 5 set by the apex court to complete the elections.
Indirect polls to follow
The schedule for indirect elections to some of the posts will be released once the results of the direct
elections are declared