Karnataka panchayat elections for zilla and taluk panchayats are expected to be held in the first or second week of January, Minister for Forest, Ecology and Environment Eshwar Khandre said, signalling a possible end to more than five years without elected representatives in the two tiers of rural local government.
Khandre said the state government was committed to decentralisation and that the process to finalise reservations for rural local body elections was under way. A draft reservation notification had already been issued, with objections accepted until October 19, he said.
More than 2,000 objections were received against the draft reservation arrangements. Officials are examining the objections in accordance with the rules, after which the final notification will be issued, Khandre said while speaking to reporters.
The reservation notification is a key administrative step because it determines the constituencies and categories for which seats will be reserved in the elections. The minister did not provide a specific date for issuing the final notification, but said it would be released soon.
Once the state government submits its proposal, the State Election Commission will begin the election process. It will obtain electoral rolls from the Election Commission of India or revise the rolls available with the state election machinery before proceeding with the elections, Khandre said.
The proposed schedule follows an extended period in which zilla and taluk panchayat institutions have not had elected councils. Elections to Karnataka’s district and taluk panchayats were last held in April 2016. The tenure of the members elected at that time ended on April 27, 2021.
The gap has lasted approximately five and a half years, leaving the administration of these rural local bodies outside the normal cycle of elected local governance. The zilla and taluk panchayats form important layers of rural administration and are involved in coordinating development and public service functions at district and sub-district levels.
The delay also coincides with the expiry of the terms of most gram panchayats elected in 2020 and 2021. Administrators have been appointed for a second term in those village-level bodies after their elected terms ended, according to the report.
The government’s next formal steps are the disposal of objections to the draft reservation notification, publication of the final reservation notification and submission of the election proposal to the State Election Commission. The commission will then undertake the electoral-roll and election-related process ahead of the proposed January schedule.
