Supreme Court orders six-week repolls in 50 Punjab wards after nomination interference

Investigators chaired by former Punjab and Haryana High Court judge Nirmaljit Kaur reported extensive interference with the nomination stage of the December 2024 local elections in Punjab, citing incidents such as stolen, torn or destroyed nomination documents and threats against candidates. The commission found that these actions prevented opposition candidates from contesting, leading to several Aam Aadmi Party candidates being elected unopposed.

Accepting the commission’s conclusions, the Supreme Court annulled the results in 50 municipal wards spanning Patiala and Moga districts and ordered new elections to be held within six weeks. The court instructed the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court to form a monitoring committee headed by a retired High Court judge, with senior advocates as observers, and to videograph key election procedures. Detailed ward-wise deployment of police officials must be provided to the committee, which can forward any credible complaints to the High Court for action. Results will be declared only after the committee’s report confirms a free and fair poll.