SC refuses to stay HC order allowing parents with over two children to contest Uttarkhand panchayat polls

The Supreme Court on Monday refused to interfere with an Uttarakhand High Court order setting aside a law which forbade parents with over two children from contesting Panchayat elections.

A bench of Justices N V Ramana, Krishna Murari and Sanjay Kishan Kaul refused a Special Leave Petition filed by the Uttarakhand government through its counsel Tushar Mehta, seeking a stay on the high court order.

Advocate Aayush Negi, representing Jot Singh Bisht who had challenged the law in Uttarakhand High Court, argued that the high court's order would not affect the election process and opposed the petition.

"The bench said that they would not interfere with the election process as the nomination process is already about to complete tomorrow," Negi told .

The hearing in the matter will go on, he said.

On September 19, the Uttarakhand High Court modified a law framed by the state government and allowed those who had more than two children before July 25, 2019, to contest panchayat elections.

The court had ruled that the law would apply only to the people who became parents of a third child or more after July 25 this year.

"It would be clear that Section 8(1)(r) of the 2019 Act is unreasonable as it seeks to punish those, who already have more than two children, by disqualifying them from contesting elections, and it does not act as a disincentive in preventing population growth," the court had observed.

The state government had on July 26 this year amended Uttarakhand Panchayati Raj Act, 2016 barring those with more than two children to contest panchayat polls. The panchayat elections are scheduled to begin from October 6 in the state.

( With inputs from ANI )