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HC defers PIL on voting rights to ex-officio members

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HC defers PIL on voting rights to ex-officio members
HC defers PIL on voting rights to ex-officio members

Hyderabad,Nov 26:The Andhra Pradesh High Court on Thursday adjourned the hearing on a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking voting rights to ex-officio members in the election of mayor and deputy mayor for the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation.The court, after hearing the arguments of both the parties, adjourned taking up the petition without giving its verdict.The Lok Satta Party filed a PIL in the High Court challenging the provisions in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation Act under which ex-officio members could take part in the election of Mayor and Deputy Mayor and decide on policy matters by conferring voting rights on them.The Lok Satta Party, represented by Katari Srinivasa Rao, said Sections 5 (1-A) and 90 of the GHMC Act are arbitrary, undemocratic and unconstitutional.

They are contrary to 74th amendment to the Constitution, which envisages local bodies as institutions of self-government.The GHMC Act provisions contravene the spirit of the Constitution in that ex-officio members,who are not elected to the Corporation can influence election of Mayor and Deputy Mayor by exercising their vote.It may be recalled that all political parties except the Congress were vocal in highlighting this demand for voting right to ex-officio members in their respective manifestos.The CPI and Lok Satta demanded that the Congress proclaim its stand on MPs, MLCs and MLAs being awarded the status of ex-officio members and if so, about their voting rights in local body meetings.As per the Act,all the 24 MLAs, Lok Sabha members, MLCs and Rajya Sabha members who have voting right in the city, altogether 60 in all, are ex-officio members of the Corporation whereas the total number of elected members is only 150.

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