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The Nagpur Bench of the Bombay High Court on Tuesday issued a directive regarding the announcement of results for the ongoing Nagar Parishad and Nagar Panchayat elections across Maharashtra. The court ordered that the results of all local body elections in the state be declared on December 21, ensuring uniformity and preventing any potential influence on polls that were postponed earlier.

Due to pending legal proceedings related to certain local bodies, elections in nearly 20 Nagar Parishads had been deferred. These elections were rescheduled for December 20. A petition was filed in the High Court seeking simultaneous declaration of results across the state, arguing that staggered announcements could affect the outcome of the postponed seats.

After hearing all arguments, the court directed that results for every Nagar Parishad and Nagar Panchayat election be released only on December 21, regardless of when voting takes place. The bench also stated that exit polls may be published 30 minutes after polling concludes on December 20. The Model Code of Conduct will remain in force until the revised polling date.

Court Clarifies Candidate Symbols and Expenses

The High Court further noted that candidates from constituencies where polling was cancelled will retain the election symbols previously allotted to them. However, the court declined to accept the request for increased expenditure limits for candidates contesting in the affected areas.

Reacting to the postponement of results, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis expressed significant dissatisfaction with the ongoing election process. He remarked that it was unprecedented for polls to be delayed after being announced.

“This is the system’s failure. The Election Commission must improve its procedures,” Fadnavis said, adding that the decision to defer vote counting did not seem justified. He clarified that his disagreement was with the process, not the Commission itself, and that his objections were based on legal concerns.

Administrative Impact of Postponed Results

Officials outlined several operational challenges arising from the postponement:

• Strong rooms and counting centers across the state must remain secured until November 21 to store EVMs safely.
• Since elections are being held at nearly 280 locations, over 280 counting centers and strong rooms will remain in use for an extended period.
• Continuous police deployment will be required at all strong rooms to ensure EVM security.
• Election officers and staff must perform mandatory daily inspections and sign-offs at each strong room until November 21.

Nagar Parishad elections involve almost as many counting centers as Assembly elections, but unlike Assembly counting—which typically concludes within one or two days—these centers will need to operate and remain secured for nearly three additional weeks.

Authorities noted that this extended administrative and security requirement will place significant strain on government machinery and police forces statewide.