DIMAPUR, MAY 31 (MExN): The Directorate of Municipal Affairs, Nagaland has issued a clarification on the Order passed by the Supreme Court in Special Leave Petition (Civil) and Writ Petition (Civil) pertaining to the issue of 33% reservation to women in the Urban Local Bodies (ULB) in Nagaland and challenging the Assembly Resolution of September 22, 2012 which exempted the operation of Article 243-T [one-third reservation of seats for women in the ULBs] of Part IX-A of the Constitution of India to the State of Nagaland.
Joint Director & HOD, Municipal Affairs, A. Zanbemo Ngullie in a press statement on Tuesday clarified that the Supreme Court order dated April 5, 2016 has "neither adjudicated upon the merits of the case nor has it issued any directions to the State of Nagaland."
A bare perusal of the Order passed in the above-mentioned matters reveals that the Supreme Court of India has been "pleased to convert the Special Leave Petition into a Civil Appeal," it maintained.
It pointed out that the said Order only "entails that the matter shall now be argued on its own turn as a regular matter, which may take some time before it is finally decided."
The press statement also sought to highlight that the October 21, 2011 directions issued by the single judge were not sustained by the Division Bench and were replaced by the operative directions issued by the Division Bench on July 31, 2012.
The directions issued by the single judge were subsumed and merged with the impugned judgment passed by the Division Bench, it informed.
Further, the stay on the implementation of the impugned judgment by the Supreme Court does not operate to revive the single judge’s decision and directions, it said.
In addition, there is no stay of the Legislative Assembly’s Resolution though the same was challenged in the afore-mentioned Writ Petition, thus, implying that the Assembly Resolution continues to hold the field.
In this connection, it asserted that the State of Nagaland is under no obligation to hold elections to ULBs and any communication or information to the contrary is misleading, while adding that the State awaits the final outcome of the Civil Appeal mentioned above.
"However, the Government of Nagaland may decide holding of Municipal/Town Councils election as and when deem fit," the press statement maintained.
