Jairam accuses Congress of blocking Shimla Zila Parishad election

 Leader of the Opposition and former Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur has strongly criticized the state Congress government for not yet holding the elections for the Shimla Zila Parishad chairman and vice-chairman. He said that the elected members of the Shimla Zila Parishad are having to approach the Himachal Pradesh High Court again to elect their chairman and vice-chairman. This situation in itself reveals the government’s attitude towards the Panchayati Raj institutions and the public mandate in the state.

He said that in a petition filed on August 10th titled Mamta and others versus the State of Himachal Pradesh and others, 13 elected Zila Parishad members have named the State Election Commission, the Himachal Pradesh government, and the Deputy Commissioner, Shimla, as respondents, and have demanded the immediate convening of a statutory meeting to elect the chairman and vice-chairman. The petition requests the completion of the election process in accordance with Section 90 of the Himachal Pradesh Panchayati Raj Act, 1994, and the election rules.

Jai Ram Thakur said that the dates of the entire incident itself raise questions about the functioning of the government and administration. The Shimla Zila Parishad has 25 elected seats. The Panchayat elections were held in three phases—May 26, May 28, and May 30, 2026—and the results were declared on May 31/June 1 after counting. The statutory process for electing members was then to be completed.

He stated that on June 3, 2026, the Deputy Commissioner, Shimla, issued a notice summoning all elected members to a meeting on June 6. This notice clearly cited Sections 90 and 127 of the Himachal Pradesh Panchayati Raj Act. On June 6, all elected members attended, the required quorum was complete, and all were sworn in. Despite this, the election of the Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson was not held, and the meeting was adjourned without explanation.

Jai Ram Thakur said, “This is the biggest question. When the entire House was present, the quorum was complete, and the oath had been taken, why were the Speaker and Deputy Speaker not elected? Whose call was awaited? On whose political instructions was the legal process interrupted? The government must answer this.”

Section 90 states that the election of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker should be held immediately after the oath taking.

The Leader of the Opposition stated that this is not merely a matter of political accusation. Section 90 of the Himachal Pradesh Panchayati Raj Act, 1994, cited in the petition, requires the Deputy Commissioner to convene a meeting of the elected members as soon as possible, and within a maximum of one week, after the results are declared. Following this, under Section 127, the elected members must elect a Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson from among themselves, upon the swearing-in/affirmation.

He argued that since the entire elected House was present and sworn in on June 6th, proceeding with the election process was the next step in the statutory process. The petition also alleges that no reasoned order was passed adjourning the meeting, no legal basis was cited, and no legal impediment was cited that necessitated the suspension of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker elections.

Jairam Thakur said that the Congress government should clarify what happened on June 6th that led to the swearing-in ceremony but prevented the election of the Speaker and Vice-President. If the law mandates the completion of the election process, where did the administration gain the authority to stop it?

June 27, then August 3—meeting after meeting, but leadership election incomplete

Jairam Thakur stated that the situation then escalated. Another notice was issued on June 20th, and a meeting was scheduled for June 27th. According to the petition, the notice for that meeting did not even clearly state the agenda for the election of the President and Vice President, and only 11 elected members attended the June 27th meeting. The Deputy Commissioner himself was not present, and the Additional Deputy Commissioner presided over the meeting. The pending election process for the President and Vice President was again not completed.

Subsequently, on July 20th, another notice was issued, calling a meeting for the election of the District Council President and Vice President at Bachat Bhawan, Deputy Commissioner’s Office, Shimla, on August 3, 2026, at 11 a.m. This notice clearly stated the election under Section 90 and Rule 86.

He said, “The question is, how many meetings does an elected body need to elect a president and vice president? The public has given its verdict, the members have been elected and sworn in, but the government is constantly prolonging the process.”

“When Congress did not get the numbers, it used the administration as a political tool.”

Jairam Thakur alleged that the public had sent a clear message against the Congress government in the Panchayat and local body elections. Now, where the Congress party lacks numbers, efforts are being made to change the political equation by prolonging the administrative process.

He said, “In a democracy, governments don’t create majorities; the public gives them. The party must accept the number of seats the public has allotted to it. Using the administration to obstruct the will of elected representatives or to gain time and create room for political manipulation is against the spirit of democracy.”

He said that the district administration is not the office of any political party. The Deputy Commissioner’s office cannot be allowed to become a political base for the Congress. Officials are accountable to the Constitution and the law, not to any Chief Minister, Minister, or political party.

There is no room for excuses after the High Court’s August 6 decision.

The Leader of the Opposition stated that the most important aspect of this case is the Himachal Pradesh High Court’s decision of August 6, 2026, in CWP No. 11710/2026, Ankush Indoria vs. State Election Commission & Others. This case concerned the delay in the election of the President and Vice President of the Panchayat Samiti Indora. The attached decision states that the elected members had taken the oath, but the election of the President and Vice President had not been held, and no date had been notified.

Jai Ram Thakur stated that the new petition filed by the Shimla Zila Parishad members cites this decision, arguing that the election of the president and vice-president of an elected local body cannot be indefinitely stalled by executive inaction or interference. The petition also states that a copy of the said decision was immediately circulated through the Chief Secretary’s Office to all authorized officials involved in Panchayati Raj Institution elections.

He said, “When the High Court’s decision is in place, the law is in place, and the elected members are in place, what is the government waiting for? Will every district council and panchayat committee now have to go to the High Court first to elect their president?”

The arrival of 13 members in court is a matter of shame for the government.

Jai Ram Thakur said that the current situation has led 13 elected members of the Shimla District Council to seek a writ of mandamus from the High Court directing the administration to convene a special statutory meeting of all elected members to complete the election of the president and vice-president. The petition seeks to conduct the elections within a fixed and short timeframe and to ensure the process is not postponed without legal grounds.

He said that the petition also requested the court to summon the entire original record of meetings, notices and proceedings related to June 3, June 6, June 20, June 27, July 20 and August 3 and to investigate the decision of not holding or postponing the elections and the reasons thereof.

Jai Ram Thakur said, “The government should itself think what could be a more unfortunate picture of democracy than the fact that the public elects their representatives by voting, the elected representatives take oath and then the same representatives have to go to court for the right to elect their president and vice-president.”

District Council is not just a political post, it is an important institution for development.

He stated that the absence of a District Council President and Vice President is not merely a political issue. The petition also describes the District Council as a vital link in the three-tier Panchayati Raj system, stating that it plays a crucial role in planning, coordinating, monitoring, and implementing development projects at the district level. Its work is directly linked to the development and welfare of people, especially rural, poor, vulnerable, remote, and backward areas.

He said that preventing the full functioning of elected institutions due to the government’s political stubbornness ultimately impacts the development of the people of Shimla district. Congress cannot avenge its political defeat with public development.

“Now hold elections, face the mandate”

Jairam Thakur urged Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu to stop hiding behind the administration. If the Congress party has a majority, it should hold elections and elect its own president, and if it lacks a majority, it should respectfully accept the public mandate.

He said, “The BJP’s demand is clear: immediately set a clear date, time, and place for the election of the Shimla Zila Parishad president and vice-president, and complete the legal process. No excuses, no political pressure, and no administrative delay will be accepted.”

Jai Ram Thakur said that the BJP will fight every democratic battle, from the streets to the House of Representatives and, if necessary, to the courts, to protect the autonomy of democratic institutions and the public mandate. The Congress government should understand that the mandate cannot be buried in files and the rights of elected representatives cannot be indefinitely curtailed by administrative orders.