Supreme Court dismisses plea challenging increase in number of seats in BMC from 227 to 236

Supreme Court. File Pic

The Supreme Court has dismissed the petition challenging a Bombay High Court order which had rejected the plea against the decision to increase the ward strength of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) from 227 to 236.

A bench of Chief Justice of India NV Ramana with Justice AS Bopanna and Justice Hima Kohli rejected the plea filed by Bharathiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders Abhijit Samant and Rajeshree Shirwadkar.

The petitioners had challenged a Bombay High Court order. Bombay High Court had dismissed their petition challenging the increase in the number of seats in BMC from 227 to 236. The petitioners had said that the decision has been taken without "quantifiable data or latest census population data available" but the state government had said that the increase was proportional to the increase in population.

The census was due in 2021 but the work was postponed in view of Covid-19. The last census was conducted in 2011. The petitioner had challenged an ordinance of the Maharashtra government increasing the ward strength of the BMC.

Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi appeared for the petitioner in the Supreme Court and submitted that seats have been increased without the census having been held. The bench noted that the population has increased in the last ten years and refused to interfere with the Bombay High Court order.

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