Hyderabad: A plea challenging the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation’s (GHMC) ward delimitation notification was filed in the Telangana High Court on Monday, December 15.
GHMC commissioner RV Karnan issued the notification on December 9. The petitioner, C Vinay Kumar, a resident of Chikkadpally, challenged the preliminary notification, claiming that the GHMC commissioner did not consider his objections regarding the notification.
Kumar urged the High Court to direct the civic body commissioner to duly consider his objections before issuing the final notification regarding delimitation of wards.
Delimitation causing confusion
A counsel representing Kumar stated that the preliminary delimitation exercise has resulted in widespread confusion among voters across various divisions.
Citing an example, the counsel argued that the notification proposes to change the name of the erstwhile Ramnagar Division-87, which was previously known as Chikkadpally Division, to Bagh Lingampally Division-164, despite the earlier nomenclature having existed for several decades, even prior to the formation of GHMC in 2007.
The counsel added that prior to the 2009 GHMC elections, Chikkadpally Division was renamed as Ramnagar Division-87 and the said name continued uninterruptedly during three successive GHMC elections held in 2009, 2016 and 2020.
He also contented that altering the division names once again would cause significant confusion among the public and voters.
Relocation of funds
The petitioner also expressed concerns that the delimitation process could potentially lead to diversion of funds earmarked for developmental works in specific divisions. Kumar said that funds allocated for particular divisions may be reallocated to newly merged divisions, thereby depriving residents of the original colonies or blocks of the intended benefits of developmental projects.
No sufficient ground
After hearing the petitioner’s argument, Justice B Vijaysen Reddy that the petitioner did not appear to have sufficient grounds to raise the objections. The High Court adjourned the matter and directed the Registry of the High Court to list the writ petition in the Motion List.
The case was adjourned for further hearing.
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