KOLKATA: The Calcutta high court on Friday refused to stick the scheduled election of West Bengal minister Firhad Hakim as the mayor of the town.
Hakim has been selected as the mayor designate of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) through councillors of the ruling Trinamool Congress following Sovan Chatterjee's resignation from the publish on a path through celebration supremo and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
An opposition CPI(M) councillor had moved the high court, difficult Hakim's scheduled election on the floor that he was not an elected councillor from any of the wards of the KMC.
Refusing to pass any meantime stay, Justice Debangshu Basak directed the state and the KMC to record affidavits in opposition to the petition of CPI(M) councillor Bilkis Begum.
The petitioner was directed to record her affidavit in answer inside every other week.
The matter would be taken up for further hearing on December 17, the court directed.
The petitioner challenged the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (Second Amendment) Bill, 2018, which was handed through the West Bengal Assembly lately.
The amended act, to which the governor has given his assent, enables an individual, who isn't an elected councillor, to be made a mayor of the KMC. The person would must be elected inside six months to continue in the publish.
The modification facilitated the taking over of Firhad Hakim, who isn't a councillor, as the mayor of KMC. Hakim is a minister in the West Bengal cupboard.
The councillor prayed for the nullification of the modification, claiming that the amended act is unconstitutional.
Appearing for the petitioner, senior recommend Bikash Bhattacharya submitted that a mayor of the town is elected from a number of the elected representatives.
The Constitution does not provide for a non-elected person to go an area or municipal body, Bhattacharya, himself a former mayor of the town from the CPI(M), submitted.
He claimed that the Assembly did not have the authority to modify the rules governing the election of a mayor to a civic body.
Appearing for the state, Advocate General Kishore Dutta submitted that since the Constitution did not expressly limit the election of a non-member of the municipal body to the publish of mayor, it would not be termed unconstitutional.
While the AG claimed that "a prohibition cannot be assumed", Bhattacharya submitted that "it cannot be done unless there is an enabling provision."
Senior recommend Saktinath Mukherjee, appearing for the KMC, submitted that the Constitution only if a state legislature will legislate on all matters on the subject of election in a municipal body.
Stating that there's no bar on the legislature in legislating on matters associated with the election in a municipal body, Mukherjee submitted that prohibition is to be expressed and cannot be inferred.
Justice Basak requested whether a mayor, who isn't an elected representative, may vote on any factor in the House, to which Mukherjee stated the best may well be exercised most effective after he was elected from one of the crucial wards in the municipal company.
The Trinamool Congress, which has an enormous majority in the KMC with 122 seats out of a total 144, has elected Firhad Hakim as its leader in the municipal body.
The Left Front has 14, BJP five and the Congress 2 seats, whilst one seat is vacant.
While Hakim has filed his nomination for the mayor's publish from the TMC, councillor Meena Devi Purohit, a former deputy mayor of the KMC, has filed as a BJP candidate.
Election for the publish of mayor to KMC is scheduled to be hung on December three.
Hakim has been selected as the mayor designate of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) through councillors of the ruling Trinamool Congress following Sovan Chatterjee's resignation from the publish on a path through celebration supremo and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
An opposition CPI(M) councillor had moved the high court, difficult Hakim's scheduled election on the floor that he was not an elected councillor from any of the wards of the KMC.
Refusing to pass any meantime stay, Justice Debangshu Basak directed the state and the KMC to record affidavits in opposition to the petition of CPI(M) councillor Bilkis Begum.
The petitioner was directed to record her affidavit in answer inside every other week.
The matter would be taken up for further hearing on December 17, the court directed.
The petitioner challenged the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (Second Amendment) Bill, 2018, which was handed through the West Bengal Assembly lately.
The amended act, to which the governor has given his assent, enables an individual, who isn't an elected councillor, to be made a mayor of the KMC. The person would must be elected inside six months to continue in the publish.
The modification facilitated the taking over of Firhad Hakim, who isn't a councillor, as the mayor of KMC. Hakim is a minister in the West Bengal cupboard.
The councillor prayed for the nullification of the modification, claiming that the amended act is unconstitutional.
Appearing for the petitioner, senior recommend Bikash Bhattacharya submitted that a mayor of the town is elected from a number of the elected representatives.
The Constitution does not provide for a non-elected person to go an area or municipal body, Bhattacharya, himself a former mayor of the town from the CPI(M), submitted.
He claimed that the Assembly did not have the authority to modify the rules governing the election of a mayor to a civic body.
Appearing for the state, Advocate General Kishore Dutta submitted that since the Constitution did not expressly limit the election of a non-member of the municipal body to the publish of mayor, it would not be termed unconstitutional.
While the AG claimed that "a prohibition cannot be assumed", Bhattacharya submitted that "it cannot be done unless there is an enabling provision."
Senior recommend Saktinath Mukherjee, appearing for the KMC, submitted that the Constitution only if a state legislature will legislate on all matters on the subject of election in a municipal body.
Stating that there's no bar on the legislature in legislating on matters associated with the election in a municipal body, Mukherjee submitted that prohibition is to be expressed and cannot be inferred.
Justice Basak requested whether a mayor, who isn't an elected representative, may vote on any factor in the House, to which Mukherjee stated the best may well be exercised most effective after he was elected from one of the crucial wards in the municipal company.
The Trinamool Congress, which has an enormous majority in the KMC with 122 seats out of a total 144, has elected Firhad Hakim as its leader in the municipal body.
The Left Front has 14, BJP five and the Congress 2 seats, whilst one seat is vacant.
While Hakim has filed his nomination for the mayor's publish from the TMC, councillor Meena Devi Purohit, a former deputy mayor of the KMC, has filed as a BJP candidate.
Election for the publish of mayor to KMC is scheduled to be hung on December three.
Calcutta HC refuses to stay mayoral election
![Calcutta HC refuses to stay mayoral election]()
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November 30, 2018
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