Notice to defence ministry over alleged irregularities in SCB elections

HYDERABAD: The Cantonment Vikas Manch (CVM) has sent a legal notice to the defence ministry and the CEO of the Secunderabad Cantonment Board D. Madhukar Naik, citing irregularities in the proposal for the April 30 election to the Board and demanding that they not be held now.

Challenging the election proposal, the CVM said that the last ordinary board election was held on January 11, 2015, and the tenure of the elected members ended on January 10, 2020, when fresh elections should have been called. Instead, the tenure was extended, stating that the Cantonment Bill 2020 was pending before Parliament to replace the Cantonment Act, 2006.

Hence, it was unfair and improper under the eye of the law to hold the elections while the amendment Act has not been passed.

The tenure of the board was extended on February 8, 2022, and February 10, 2023, by six months at a time which the CVM said was an abuse of law.

The manch has been petitioning the Centre for the last two years for the merger of civil areas of the cantonment with the GHMC. The state government on December 14 last gave its no-objection to the Centre for the move. The Centre constituted an eight-member committee for the purpose.

The manch also flagged the “arbitrary” deletion of names of more than 30,000 voters without intimating them. It alleged that more than 50 per cent of the votes were deleted in most cantonments in India which was against Article 326 of the Indian Constitution

The legal notice sought a stay on the elections till the issues raised by the CVM were explained. Otherwise, it said, it would examine its options to move the High Court.