"We are in a democracy": Delhi HC pulls up Centre for failure to hold Cantonment Board polls

The Delhi High Court on Monday pulled up the Central government for failing to hold elections to Cantonment Boards across the country for more than five years and for using repeated notifications to govern the bodies with unelected officials [Sandeep Tanwar & Anr v Union of India]. .There are over 60 Cantonment Boards spread across India and they manage the municipal administration of areas designated as cantonments. The last polls to elect members of these boards were held in January 2015 and the tenure of those members ended in 2020. A Division Bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela today said that in a democratic society, democratically elected bodies should govern the people and that the government’s conduct in this case may amount to a colourable exercise of power. “We are living in a democratic society. We need to have democratically elected [Cantonment] boards,” the Court remarked. It noted that Section 12 of the Cantonments Act, 2006, provides for the constitution of these boards, including elected members, but the government has been issuing notifications under Section 13 to vary the constitution and not holding elections. The Court recorded that under Section 13, the power to vary the constitution of a Cantonment Board can only be exercised under two circumstances: because of military operation or for the administration of the cantonment. It observed that when a notification under Section 13 is issued, there is no elected member in the board and, therefore, continued and repeated use of these notifications “scuttles the democratic process by which the [Cantonment] Act has envisaged the Cantonment Board to function”. Therefore, the Court issued notice to the Central government as well as the Director General Defence Estates (DGDE) and directed them to file their replies explaining how repeated promulgation of notifications under Section 13 can be permitted when the law says that the boards must function through democratically elected boards. Further, the Court said that the matter will now be treated as a public interest litigation (PIL). The matter will be taken up next on March 11..The Court passed these directions while dealing with a plea filed by Sandeep Tanwar and Yogesh Kumar, residents of Delhi and Agra cantonments respectively, seeking directions to hold the cantonment board elections. In their plea, Tanwar and Kumar argued that the government under the garb of altering the constitution of the Cantonment Board, failed to conduct elections for more than ten years. It added that there were also significant delays in nominating civilian members to the various cantonment boards..Central Government Standing Counsel (CGSC) Satya Ranjan Swain appeared for the Union of India and stated that the elections have been delayed because the government is taking steps to bring uniformity in the municipal laws and the cantonments, and that a proposal of accession of civil areas of certain cantonment boards to their adjoining municipalities is also pending consideration. Swain added that these issues have been taken up with the State governments and the process is likely to take some time, due to which the government has been issuing notifications under Section 13 of the Cantonments Act. .After hearing the arguments from both sides, the Court ordered the government to file its response. .Advocate Aman Bhalla argued the petitioners' case. The plea has been filed through advocates Sidharth Chopra, Navneet and Hriday Gandhi. .Follow Bar and Bench channel on WhatsAppDownload the Bar and Bench Mobile app for instant access to the latest legal news.