Haryana Government’s decision to make academic qualification mandatory and keep out loan and power bill defaulters in panchayat polls have again affected the filing of nominations on various seats.
As many as 370 seats of panches and two seats of sarpanches will remain vacant even after bypolls on September 25 as no nomination has been received for these seats.
Haryana State Election Commissioner, Dalip Singh while talking to the mediapersons said that no nomination has been received for 370 seats of panches and two seats of sarpanches, and these seats will remain vacant. It appears that due to the criteria of educational qualification, no one was eligible to file nomination for the panchayat polls on these seats, said he.
Singh also said that after withdrawal, 1,480 panches, four sarpanches and four members of panchayat samitis have been elected unanimously. Therefore, elections would take place only on remaining 268 seats of panches, eight sarpanches and one member of panchayat samiti, he said.
The by-polls would be held on September 25 from 8 am to 4 pm and the counting of votes would be held immediately after the end of voting. The panchayat polls were held earlier this year, however a large number of seats had remained vacant due to absence of eligible candidates.
Notably, the amendments made in the Haryana Panchayat Act, 1994, had barred the uneducated people to contest the polls. As per the new Panchayati Act, general-category candidates for panchayat polls were required to have a minimum qualification of completing class 10. Scheduled caste and women aspirants were required to clear class 8 while women from the SC category were eligible only if they have passed V class.
Apart from mandatory educational qualifications for the candidates, the Act had made it mandatory that poll candidates have a functional toilet at home. Anyone found defaulting in payment of agricultural loan and electricity bills were also disqualified from contesting the poll.
Following these amendments, a record 333 unmarried women were elected to the post of sarpanch and panch in the panchayat polls held earlier this year in three phases in Haryana.
Meanwhile, the State Election Commissioner said that the Commission has completed all arrangements for ensuring peaceful, free and fair poll for by-elections and general elections (two Gram Panchayats namely Tosham of district Bhiwani and Chhachhrauli of district Yamunanagar).
Singh said that polling on 127 booths for all 31 wards of Municipal Council, Sirsa would also take place on the same day, for which 159 candidates are in the fray. National party BJP is contesting on its reserve symbol in 30 wards, said he.
He added that there would be heavy deployment of police force to maintain law and order at the polling stations and sensitive areas, besides adequate police force at all sensitive and hyper-sensitive polling stations.
Appealing to the voters to cast their ballot in order to elect the members of panchayat and municipal institutions for strengthening the democracy at grassroots level, he said the election to all the seats would be conducting using Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).