The Orissa High Court has upheld the state government's 2014 notification declaring Rourkela Municipality as a municipal corporation and merging several nearby villages, paving the way for civic body polls which were last held in 2008.
Court's Ruling on Petitions
Dismissing two writ petitions filed in 2015, Justice R K Pattanaik ruled that the decision to include villages such as Jagda, Jhartarang, Brahmani Tarang, Sana Brahmani Tarang and Gopa Palli within Rourkela Municipal Corporation (RMC) was legally valid and did not violate constitutional provisions.
Significance of the Judgment
The April 22 judgment assumes significance as the urban local body elections in Rourkela were last held in 2008 and the term of Rourkela Municipality had expired in 2013. However, the state government had not conducted elections there citing a high court stay order issued on March 26, 2015, on the petitions challenging the notification issued on November 14, 2014, declaring Rourkela Municipality as Rourkela Municipal Corporation. The web copy of the judgment was released online on Monday.
Petitioners' Arguments
The petitioners had challenged the notification on grounds that it contravened Article 243-ZC of the Constitution, the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 (PESA), and the Forest Rights Act, 2006. They argued that the inclusion of Scheduled Area villages into an urban local body framework was illegal and liable to be struck down.
Court's Observations
Rejecting these claims, Justice Pattanaik observed that “the Orissa Municipal Act confers power upon the State Government to create, include and exclude or otherwise alter the Municipal areas,” and clarified that “the constitutional scheme under Article 244(1) read with Fifth Schedule does not place the Scheduled Areas outside the reach of any such State legislation.”
The judgment is expected to expedite the election process in Rourkela, which has been without an elected municipal body for over a decade. The state government is now likely to announce a schedule for the civic polls in the coming weeks.
