IMPORTANT POINT
The main legal point established in the judgment is that reservation is with reference to the category/caste to which the person belongs and not the nature of the constituency from which they were elected. The judgment also clarified that the office of the President of a municipality, if not reserved or meant for a general category, then all the candidates irrespective of the caste, class, or community and irrespective of the fact whether they had been elected from a reserved ward or a general ward, would be entitled to seek election and contest the office of the President of the Municipality.

JUDGMENT :

TARLOK SINGH CHAUHAN, J.

1. The writ petition filed by the appellant/writ petitioner assailing the election of respondent No. 5, as the Chairperson of the Municipal Council, Dehra, District Kangra, Himachal Pradesh, has been dismissed and aggrieved thereby, the appellant has filed the instant appeal.

2. The brief facts of the case are that the Deputy Commissioner, Kangra at Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh, issued office order dated 27.08.2020, as per provisions of Section 10 of the Himachal Pradesh Municipal (Delimitation and Reservation of Wards) Rules, 2015 (for short Rules, 2015) and accordingly reservation of wards was announced category wise for Municipal Councils and Nagar Panchayats of District Kangra, H.P.

3. Thereafter, the Government of Himachal Pradesh issued notification dated 17.12.2020, thereby providing reservation to the offices of Chairpersons in municipalities in District Kangra, H.P.

4. As regards the Chairperson falling in Municipal Council Dehra, District Kangra is concerned, according to the petitioner though the seat was reserved for Woman (General) Category but the same was being occupied by respondent No. 5, who belongs to the Scheduled Castes category and aggrieved thereby the petitioner filed the writ petition for the grant of the following substantive reliefs:

(a) That impugned Annexure P-4, dated 03.02.2021 in allowing private respondent herein belonging to Scheduled Caste category to contest and seek election as Chair person of Municipal Council, Dehra, District Kangra, H.P. and declaring her as such, though the seat was reserved for Women (General), may very kindly be quashed and set aside with directions to the official respondents to hold fresh elections for the post of Chair person, Municipal Council, Dehra from the category of Women (General) and act accordingly to secure the ends of law and justice.

5. The learned writ Court dismissed the petition on merits and also on the ground of availability of alternate remedy and maintainability.

6. It is vehemently contended by Shri Ajay Sharma, learned Senior Counsel for the appellant, that the learned Writ Court has erred in not considering the Rules 10 and 12, more particularly, Sub-Rule 7 and 8 of the Rules, 2015, which clearly provide that the offices of the Chairpersons are to be reserved for Women belonging to the “general category” and that “general category” for the purpose of 2015 Rules means a man or woman or both belonging to this category i.e. General Category. Therefore, no person other than the woman category i.e. General Category could have been appointed or elected as the Chairperson.

7. As regards the maintainability of the petition, it is vehemently argued that writ in the nature of quo warranto, was maintainable and any other equitable consideration like estoppel, waiver etc. would not come in the way of the maintainability of the writ petition.

8. On the other hand, Shri I.N. Mehta, learned Additional Advocate General and Shri K.D. Sood, learned Senior Advocate, have supported the judgment rendered by the learned Single Judge and would contend that since the judgment has been passed after taking into consideration the law laid down by the Hon'ble Supreme Court and this Court, therefore, it warrants no interference.

We have heard the learned counsel for the parties and have gone through the material placed on record.

9. Rule 10(6) and Rule 12 (7&8) of the Rules, 2015, as relied upon by the petitioner read as under:

Rule 10(6) The wards reserved for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and women belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes on the basis of percentage of population shall be changed in the immediate next election and at the time of such next elections, the ward/wards having next highest percentage of population shall be reserved for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and women belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and the ward earlier reserved shall be kept open to the “general category” and so on for subs