Daijiworld Media Network - Kargil
Kargil, Oct 22: The Ladakh administration has dissolved the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC), Kargil, with immediate effect following the reorganisation of districts, paving the way for a revised local governance structure in the Union Territory.
The move follows the resignation of the council’s chief executive councillor, three executive councillors and six other councillors. The administration said the reorganisation had made the existing council’s composition legally untenable and structurally unsuitable to function within its original framework.
An order issued late on Wednesday by Shurbir Singh, Commissioner-Secretary, Revenue, Ladakh, confirmed the dissolution under the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils Act, 1997, following directions from Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena.
The order cited the creation of new districts, including Drass, Zanskar and Sankoo, from areas of the erstwhile Kargil district. The territorial changes necessitated a revised administrative arrangement and separate councils for the newly constituted districts.
The administration has notified 100 elected constituencies across eight Autonomous Hill Development Councils: Leh (22), Kargil (21), Sankoo (13), Changthang (10), Nubra (9), Sham (9), Zanskar (9) and Drass (7).
Following the dissolution, the chief executive councillor, executive councillors and all elected or nominated members of the erstwhile Kargil council will cease to hold office and exercise their powers.
The Deputy Commissioner-cum-Chief Executive Officer, Kargil, will assume the council’s powers, duties and functions to ensure continuity in administration and public services. The arrangement will remain in place until separate Hill Development Councils for the newly created districts are established under the 1997 Act and its rules.
Meanwhile, the State Election Commission has announced that panchayat elections across Ladakh will be held on November 21, with the entire election process scheduled to conclude by November 30. The Union Territory will hold panchayat elections after eight years, with the last polls conducted in November 2018.
State Election Commissioner Sudhanshu Pandey announced the schedule in an order issued on Wednesday evening.
Election notifications will be issued on October 26, while November 2 is the last date for filing nominations. Scrutiny of nomination papers will take place on November 3, and candidates can withdraw their nominations until November 5. Polling will be held on November 21, with the entire process to be completed by November 30.
The State Election Commission has also brought the Model Code of Conduct into immediate effect for candidates and political parties to ensure free and fair elections to Panchayati Raj institutions.
The code prohibits bribery, voter intimidation, communal campaigning, the use of places of worship for electioneering and other corrupt practices. Campaigning is barred within 100 metres of polling stations, while public meetings are prohibited during the 48 hours before the close of polling.
Candidates and political parties must obtain the necessary permissions for meetings and processions, maintain law and order and refrain from obstructing rival parties’ activities. The code also prohibits the misuse of government machinery and personnel for election campaigning and bars ministers from combining official visits with political activities.
The commission said all concerned must comply with the Model Code of Conduct, its subsequent instructions and applicable directions issued by the Election Commission of India.