New Delhi: The Kerala State Election Commission (SEC) on Thursday filed a petition, before the Supreme Court, challenging the Kerala High Court's order which urged the SEC, to conduct the local bodies polls with the voters list used for 2019 Lok Sabha election.
The Kerala SEC has submitted before the SC that there are some issues in conducting the civic polls with 2019 electoral roll.
While the SEC prefers to go with 2015 voters list, the Congress led United Democratic Front (UDF) alliance in Kerala has been demanding the commission to conduct the civic elections with 2019 voters list, citing that even the recently held LS polls were held on the basis of 2019 list.
However, the commission and CPI(M) led Left Democratic Front (LDF) want to follow the 2015 voter's list.
"State Election Commission is and independent constitutional institution. Interference in activities including voter list is not acceptable,"the SEC asserted.
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The SC has accepted the petition and it will be reportedly be heard by next week. It is noted when the 2016 Kerala State Legislative Assembly elections were conducted with 2015 voters list, the LDF led by CPI(M) got 91 seats and dethroned the Congress-led UDF government.
However, the April 2019 Lok Sabha election was conducted on the basis of 2019 voters list, in which, the UDF got a clear mandate by winning 19 out of 20 seats and LDF drew merely one seat.
Therefore the UDF bats for conducting the Local Body polls with 2019 voters list and LDF wants 2015 voters list for the Kerala civic polls.
When the SEC decided to conduct the Kerala civic polls with 2015 voters list, the UDF approached the KHC and got relief.
It is noted that the Kerala Local Body polls have to be conducted in November this year. However, the commission's act of approaching the SC would further get delay the civic polls.
