SC orders re-election in 50 Punjab wards, BJP demands Bhagwant Mann's exit

The Supreme Court has ordered fresh elections in 50 municipal wards in Punjab after a fact-finding commission found "widespread obstruction during the nomination process" in the local body polls.The court set aside elections in 28 wards in Patiala district and 22 wards in Moga, directing that fresh polls in all 50 wards be completed within six weeks.A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana accepted the findings of a one-member commission headed by former High Court judge Nirmaljit Kaur. The commission, appointed in March 2025, submitted its report in November 2025.In its September 28 order, uploaded on Wednesday night, the bench said the commission had found "widespread obstruction during the nomination process", including instances where nomination papers were "snatched, torn or destroyed" and candidates were "assaulted, detained or threatened'. "We accept the recommendations and direct that fresh elections be conducted in the relevant 50 wards. The entire process of re-election shall be completed within six weeks," the court said.The bench noted the submission of senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the Punjab government, that the state had no objection to the commission’s recommendations. The court directed the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court to nominate at least two or three senior members of the High Court Bar to act as observers during the re-election process. The filing, scrutiny and submission of nomination forms, allocation of symbols and polling will be videographed in the presence of the observers. The recordings will be preserved and handed over to the Monitoring Committee.The Punjab government has also been directed to provide the Monitoring Committee, before the nomination process begins, a ward-wise list of officers and officials deployed on election duty. A list of police officers of the rank of DSP and above deployed for election duty must also be furnished.The court said complaints regarding any interference with or obstruction of the re-election process by any person, including officials, could be made to the Monitoring Committee.It further directed that the honorarium for the Monitoring Committee and observers would be fixed by the Chief Justice of the High Court. The Punjab government would bear the honorarium and incidental expenses and provide secretarial, transport, logistical and security support.After the re-election process, a report must be submitted to the Chief Justice of the High Court. The court said the process would be deemed complete only after the Chief Justice was satisfied, based on the report, that the elections had been conducted in a free and fair manner.BJP ATTACKS BHAGWANT MANNFollowing the Supreme Court order, the opposition BJP accused the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab of turning the state into "jungle raj" and demanded Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s resignation.Party spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia welcomed the court's order and alleged that the Punjab government had "murdered democracy". He also attacked AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal, saying, "The party which came into politics in the name of Swaraj has become the party of ‘goondaraj’."The Supreme Court ordered a re-poll in 50 wards after its fact-finding commission found "widespread obstruction during the nomination process, whereby nomination papers were snatched, torn or destroyed, and candidates were assaulted, detained or threatened."Bhatia said it was the responsibility of the Punjab government to ensure free and fair civic polls, but candidates were prevented from filing nomination papers and were threatened and assaulted. "Democracy has completely collapsed in Punjab," he charged.He said, "People of Punjab are demanding Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s resignation. If he does not resign, people are going to remove him from his ‘kursi’." Bhatia also sought a response from Kejriwal, who, he said, is protesting in Delhi by making "baseless" allegations of murder of democracy under the BJP-NDA rule."Kejriwal must break his silence and tell the people of Punjab and the country how democracy is being murdered in Punjab under his party’s rule with misuse of police," he added. The BJP’s attack came after the Supreme Court ordered fresh polls in the 50 municipal wards in Punjab.The local body elections were held in December 2024. The case arose after several candidates who were allegedly prevented from filing their nomination papers, as well as those aggrieved by the election of the mayor and deputy mayor in the Patiala municipal body, approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court.In January 2025, the High Court allowed the elections in the Patiala municipal corporation, observing that the deferment in some wards would not be an impediment. The aggrieved candidates subsequently approached the Supreme Court, which has now ordered fresh elections in 50 wards.- Ends