Delimitation Commission may rectify inadvertent errors under Section 11 of the Kerala Panchayat Raj Act, 1994; legal boundaries determined by the Commission are binding.

JUDGMENT

This writ petition is filed seeking the following reliefs:

“i. Issue a writ of mandamus or any other appropriate writ, order, or direction, commanding the Respondent No.5, Electoral Registration Officer, to include the name of the Petitioner and other similarly aggrieved voters in the final voter list of Ward No.19 so as to safeguard their valuable right to vote in the impending elections;

ii. Issue a writ of Mandamus or any other appropriate writ, order or direction commanding the Respondent No.5, Electoral Registration Officer, to forthwith consider and pass orders on the Exhibit P7 application dated 15.09.2025 submitted by the Petitioner under Section 24 of the Kerala Panchayat Raj Act, 1994 read with Rule 25 of the Kerala Panchayat Raj (Registration of Electors) Rules, 1994 within a time-bound period as may be fixed by this Hon’ble Court;

iii. Issue a writ of Mandamus or any other appropriate writ, order or direction commanding the Respondent No.5, Electoral Registration Officer to implement the decisions taken on Exhibit P7 application dated 15.09.2025 and accordingly correct and revise the final voter list of the Ward No. 19 of the Respondent No.6 Pallikkara Grama Panchayat.

iv. Declare that the alteration of the delimitation map of Ward No.19, as published on the official website of the Respondent No.3 Delimitation Commission subsequent to the Exhibit P2 Final Delimitation Notification dated 15.05.2025, and not in accordance with the boundaries finalized under the said Notification, is illegal, arbitrary, ultra vires Section 11 of the Kerala Panchayat Raj Act, 1994 , and without authority of law;

v. Issue a writ of Mandamus or any other appropriate writ, order or direction commanding the Respondent No.3 Delimitation Commission to retain and enforce the boundaries of Ward No.19 strictly in accordance with the Exhibit P2 Final Delimitation Notification dated 15.05.2025, without any alteration or substitution in violation to procedure established by law;

vi. To dispense off with translation of vernacular documents to English;

vii. Issue such other writ, order or direction as this Hon’ble Court may deem just, fit and proper in the facts and circumstances of the case, in the interest of justice;”[SIC]

2. The petitioner is aggrieved by the wrongful exclusion from the Final Voter List of Ward No.19 (Keekan) of the 6^th respondent, Pallikkara Grama Panchayat, despite being permanent residents within its territorial limits as demarcated by Ext. P2 Final Delimitation Notification dated 15.05.2025 and Ext. P3 map published by the 3^rd respondent Delimitation Commission in its official website. It is submitted that the 3rd respondent Delimitation Commission, exercising powers under Section 10 of the Kerala Panchayat Raj Act, 1994 , had conclusively fixed the boundaries of Ward No.19 vide Ext.P2 final delimitation notification. However, in the draft voter list as well as in the final voter list published by the 2nd respondent, the names of the petitioner herein and several other similarly aggrieved voters, though falling squarely within Ward No.19 as per Ext.P2 final delimitation notification and Ext.P3 map, were arbitrarily marked as voters of Ward No.18, thereby disenfranchising them from their own ward. Aggrieved by the same, this Writ Petition is filed.

3. Heard the learned counsel appearing for the petitioner, the learned Standing Counsel appearing for the Panchayat, the learned Standing Counsel appearing for respondents 2, 3 and 5 and the learned Special Government Pleader.

4. The short point raised by the petitioner is that, when the Delimitation Commission issued the final notification and the digital map, it cannot be changed. The Standing Counsel appearing for the State Election Commissi