The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday directed the West Bengal State Election Commission to state its position on a plea by the BJP, which claimed that the list of reserved wards in Howrah Municipal Corporation was finalised without taking into account the party's objections.
Refusing to pass any interim injunction on the list, the high court directed the commission to file its affidavit within two weeks and asked the BJP to submit a subsequent reply the week after.
It said that the matter would be taken up for hearing again once these proceedings were over.
Claiming that the commission had announced the names of wards reserved for SC/ST and women in the 66-seat Howrah Municipal Corporation (HMC) without considering its objection, the BJP had moved the court of Justice Rajasekhar Mantha.
Smarajit Roy Chowdhury, the saffron party's lawyer, prayed that the notification declaring the list of reserved wards in HMC be set aside and objection given by it be heard.
Opposing the prayer, State Election Commission counsel Nayan Bihani submitted that it had given due consideration to the objection placed by the BJP and rejected the contention after weighing the pros and cons.
Elections are due since 2018 in HMC, currently being run by administrators. It is likely to go to polls along with several other municipal bodies in the state later this year.
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