ULB elections will be completed by April 2024, Nagaland government tells SC

DIMAPUR — The Chief Secretary of Nagaland filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court (SC) of India on December 11, stating that the rules for the Nagaland Municipal Act, 2023 would be framed within a month from the date of the affidavit, specifically on or before January 8, 2024.

Thereafter, the process for election to urban local bodies (ULBs), with 33% reservation for women, would be completed by April 30, 2024.

Filing the affidavit before a bench comprising justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Sudhanshu Dhulia, the chief secretary of the state updated that the Nagaland Municipal Act, 2023 was passed on November 9 and the Nagaland Legislative Assembly (NLA) was notified on the same day after receiving the governor’s assent.

The court was hearing a petition filed by the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), challenging the NLA resolution that exempted the 33% women’s reservation mandate in Municipalities and Town Councils as per Part IXA of the Indian Constitution.

Listing the next hearing on May 3, 2024, the court noted that, “the notice of contempt can be discharged on next date as election process shall be completed by then”.

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