Chandigarh mayoral election: SC appoints ex-HC judge as independent observer

New Delhi [India], January 27 (ANI): The Supreme Court on Monday appointed Justice Jaishree Thakur, a former judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, as an independent observer to monitor the voting for the Chandigarh mayoral elections scheduled for January 30.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh ordered that the election be conducted in the presence of the appointed observer and that the entire process be duly videographed.
The bench ordered the appointment of an observer following a no-objection given by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta on behalf of the Municipal Corporation.
"In light of the mutually agreeable stand taken by both sides, we deem it appropriate to appoint Justice Jaishree Thakur, former Judge of Punjab & Haryana High Court as the independent observer. The election proceedings shall be conducted in the physical presence of the learned observer. The election proceedings will be duly videographed," the apex court stated in its order.
It further ordered that the Returning Officer contact the independent observer and coordinate with the former judge well before the scheduled date of election.
The observer shall be paid an honorarium of Rs one lakh which shall be paid by the Chandigarh administration within one week all the necessary security arrangements shall also be made, the bench ordered.
Chandigarh mayor and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Kuldeep Kumar had approached the top court requesting that the election be conducted by a 'show of hands' rather than a secret ballot.
The apex court, however, said it had issued notice on the plea last week on the limited purpose of appointing an independent observer to ensure that the election is conducted in a "free and fair manner" on the scheduled date.
There were allegations of irregularities in the 2024 mayoral elections in Chandigarh when ballot papers were selectively defaced by Returning Officer (RO) Anil Masih to declare the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate as the winner.
After AAP candidate Kuldeep Kumar had then approached the top court against the irregularities the court overturned the RO's declaration of the result and held Kumar to be the winner of the mayoral elections. (ANI)