The Chhattisgarh High Court on Monday sought reply of the state government over a set of petitions that has challenged the decision to hold the elections to the posts of mayors of municipal corporations and chairpersons of other civic bodies in the state through indirect elections.
In October this year, the state government issued a gazette notification-- The Chhattisgarh Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Ordinance, 2019-- paving the way for indirect elections of Mayors and chief of other civic bodies in the state, state’s Advocate General Satishchandra Verma said.
Janata Congress Chhattisgarh (J) MLA Dharamjeet Singh and five others filed separate petitions challenging the decision of the government, terming it unconstitutional, Verma said.
The division bench of Chief Justice PR Ramchandra Menon and Justice PP Sahu on Monday took all six petitions for hearing and directed the state government to furnish its response on the issue, he said.
The HC has posted the matter for next hearing on November 28, he added.
As per the government’s gazette notification, general public will directly elect corporators and then the elected corporators will elect mayor and chairpersons of municipal bodies from among them.