Panchkula: The Punjab and Haryana HC has admitted a petition challenging the ward delimitation and alleged discrepancies in scheduled caste (s) population figures used for the Panchkula MC elections. The court has issued notice to the respondents and fixed Feb 18 as the next date of hearing, Congress leaders said Thursday.Addressing a press conference, Congress leaders alleged that major anomalies had surfaced in the reservation of wards and the SC population data relied upon for the delimitation exercise.MP (Ambala) Varun Choudhry, along with former councillors who have moved the plea, claimed that the SC population in Panchkula was shown as around 47,223 in 2020, but was reflected as 29,212 after delimitation, raising questions about the basis of computation.The petitioners argued that the number of SC-reserved wards had been reduced from four to three, allegedly affecting representation. They further claimed that reservation for women and backward classes had also been altered without a transparent or logical basis.While the number of wards in the municipal corporation remains unchanged at 20, the petitioners contended that boundaries were redrawn despite no change in municipal limits, sparking doubts over the fairness of the delimitation process.The plea also questioned the use of Parivar Pehchan Patra (family identity card) data to determine population figures, stating that such administrative datasets cannot substitute census data — especially when the 2011 Census remains the last official enumeration and the next is scheduled for 2027.The matter will now come up for detailed hearing on February 18.
