Gauhati High Court Dismisses PIL Challenging Women's Reservation for Itanagar Mayor Post

Court Upholds Reservation Process, Imposes Costs for Suppression of Facts

In a significant judgment, the Gauhati High Court's Itanagar Permanent Bench dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) challenging the reservation of the Itanagar Municipal Corporation's Mayor post for women. The PIL, filed by Bharat Cheda, was dismissed on grounds of suppression of material facts and lack of genuine public interest. The court imposed a penalty of ?10,000 on the petitioner.

The Division Bench, comprising Justices Kalyan Rai Surana and Pranjal Das, affirmed the legality of the reservation process under the Arunachal Pradesh Municipal Corporation Act, 2019. The court emphasized that the reservation of the Mayor’s post for women was in compliance with Section 53(1) of the Act, and the absence of specific legislative procedures did not invalidate the reservation process carried out by the Deputy Commissioner.

The petitioner had argued that the reservation was invalid as it was not prescribed by legislative procedure and was executed by the Deputy Commissioner without legislative backing. The court, however, rejected this argument, citing that the process was consistent with the law and previous practices.

The court also highlighted that the PIL lacked a genuine public interest issue, as no elected Councillor had raised objections to the reservation process. Moreover, the petitioner failed to disclose prior instances where similar reservation processes were executed, including the previous draw of lots for the Mayor's post in 2020.

In its ruling, the court noted that the petitioner approached the court without disclosing all necessary facts, thus warranting dismissal of the PIL. The imposed costs are to be utilized for disaster management purposes by the Itanagar Municipal Corporation.

The court's decision reinforces the reservation provisions for women under the Constitution and the Arunachal Pradesh Municipal Corporation Act, supporting gender equality in municipal governance.

Bottom Line:

The reservation of the post of Mayor for Women in the Itanagar Municipal Corporation, as per the proviso to Section 53(1) of the Arunachal Pradesh Municipal Corporation Act, 2019, does not warrant interference by the Court, and the absence of specific legislative procedure does not nullify the prescribed process.

Statutory provision(s): Arunachal Pradesh Municipal Corporation Act, 2019 Section 53(1), Constitution of India Article 243T(4)

Bharat Cheda v. State of Arunachal Pradesh, (Gauhati)(Itanagar Permanent Bench)(DB) : Law Finder Doc Id # 2811465