Calcutta High Court refuses to stay redrawing of Kolkata's wards from 144 to 209

The Calcutta High Court has refused to stay the redrawing of Kolkata's municipal wards, which raises their number from 144 to 209, clearing the way for the State Election Commission to hold Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) elections on the new map.

Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharyya declined to suspend a state notification dated September 11 that amended the KMC Act to set out the 209 wards, finding no prima facie case for interim relief, according to LiveLaw and LawChakra. The judge said the "balance of convenience and inconvenience is against passing of any interim order", and that a stay would affect the interest of the public at large. The order was passed on Thursday, October 29; LawChakra reported that the matter was heard the day before.

The challenge

The petition was filed by a resident of the city and argued by senior advocate Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya. It asked the court to declare the whole exercise void.

According to the reports, the petitioner argued that the wards had been drawn on the basis of electoral rolls rather than actual population, so that some residents were left out, and that the boundaries ignored geographical contiguity, compactness and administrative convenience. LawChakra reported that the petition also alleged the boundaries were shaped by previous election results to benefit the ruling party. The petitioner further argued that the KMC had already been dissolved when the change was recommended, so the Municipal Commissioner, as an officer of the corporation, had no power to recommend it under the KMC Act, 1980.

Advocate General Surajit Nath Mitra, appearing for the KMC, argued that the petition was not maintainable because Article 243ZG of the Constitution bars courts from interfering in the delimitation of municipal wards. He told the court that the Municipal Commissioner had been appointed Administrator on June 8 with all the powers of the corporation's elected members, that objections had been invited and heard in stages, and that the petitioner had filed none.

What the court decided

The judge agreed to hear the petition on limited grounds because no election notification has yet been issued, but held that, at this stage, the challenge could cover only whether objections were invited and hearings given. He found that the Administrator was competent to recommend the change and that the state has the power to amend the schedule of wards. He said the petitioner "cannot be allowed to take a stand at this point of time" after not filing objections, LiveLaw reported.

The court made clear that its findings are only prima facie. The allegations about population and partisanship will be examined at the final hearing.

Background

The process began with a notice on August 5 inviting objections to a draft schedule of wards. The KMC (Amendment) Act, 2026 came into force on August 20, objections were accepted from August 22 to September 3, and the final notification followed on September 11, according to LiveLaw. The KMC has been run by an administrator since June. LawChakra noted that the law requires elections within six months of dissolution, and the court said a stay would leave the city without elected councillors for longer.

What happens next

The State Election Commission is now free to announce the KMC poll on the 209-ward map. IANS reported that elections to seven urban bodies in the state, including Kolkata, are likely in December, though no date has been announced.

The reports differ on the timetable for the case. LiveLaw and LawChakra said the respondents must file affidavits within three weeks, with the petitioner replying a week later. IANS, in a report carried by Punjab Kesari, said the state has four weeks and the petitioner two weeks after that, with the case to be listed again after six weeks. No reactions from political parties to the order had been reported by Saturday morning.