Sec 53 of Haryana MC Act, 1994 stipulates Election of Mayor in Firstly convened meeting of newly constituted MC however Election Rules mention administering Oath to directly elected Mayor – Advocate Hemant Kumar
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A major constitutional and legal controversy has erupted ahead of Thursday’s oath-taking ceremonies for the directly elected mayors of Haryana’s three municipal corporations — Ambala, Panchkula and Sonipat — with legal experts alleging that the State government failed to amend the parent municipal law even seven-and-a-half years after introducing direct mayoral elections.
The controversy centres around an explosive contradiction between the Haryana Municipal Corporation Act, 1994 and the Haryana Municipal Corporation Election Rules, 1994.
While the Rules recognise directly elected mayors and prescribe their oath-taking procedure, the parent Act still mandates that mayors are to be elected by councillors during the first meeting of the newly constituted House.
In other words: the law still speaks the language of indirect elections, while the government is functioning under a direct-election system.
The issue has now cast a shadow over the scheduled oath ceremonies of newly elected mayors — Akshita Saini in Ambala, Shyam Lal Bansal in Panchkula and Rajiv Jain in Sonipat — all set to take oath on May 28 before divisional commissioners.
“Government Changed the System, Forgot to Change the Law”
The legal challenge has been raised by Punjab and Haryana High Court advocate Hemant Kumar, who has sent a detailed legal notice to Haryana Governor Ashim Kumar Ghosh, Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, Urban Local Bodies Minister Vipul Goel, the State Election Commissioner and senior law officers.
Kumar argues that although Haryana introduced direct mayoral elections in September 2018, the government never amended Section 53 of the 1994 Act — the very provision governing the first meeting of a municipal corporation.
“That section still clearly states that councillors shall elect the Mayor through voting in the first meeting of the corporation,” Kumar said. “Yet the government is administering oaths to directly elected mayors without correcting the statutory framework.”
The contradiction, he argues, is not merely technical but constitutional.
A Startling Provision Still Exists: “Draw of Lots”
Perhaps the most embarrassing aspect for the government is that Section 53 still contains a provision stating that if votes for mayoral election are tied, the winner shall be decided through a “draw of lots”.
“That means the law still assumes the Mayor is elected inside the House, not by lakhs of voters,” Kumar pointed out.
Legal experts say this strengthens the argument that the State amended the electoral mechanism administratively and through subordinate rules, but failed to align the parent legislation accordingly.
Under settled constitutional principles, if there is a conflict between an Act and Rules framed under it, the Act prevails.
CM’s Presence Could Intensify Political Heat
Sources indicate Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini is likely to attend the events in one or more of the corporations on Thursday.
That possibility has triggered sharp political chatter in legal and opposition circles over whether the State government is proceeding with ceremonies whose statutory foundation itself is under challenge.
The issue could potentially snowball into a larger constitutional confrontation if challenged before the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
Demand for Immediate Ordinance
In his representation, Kumar has urged the Governor to promulgate an ordinance immediately to:
Amend Section 53 of the 1994 Act;
Remove obsolete provisions relating to indirect mayoral elections;
Retrospectively validate the changes from October 4, 2018;
Clarify the legal status of all directly elected mayors since 2018.
He has also claimed that he had publicly flagged the same anomaly in March 2025 during a mass oath-taking event for eight mayors in Panchkula, but no corrective action followed.New Law Passed, But Not Yet Operational
Ironically, sources say the anomaly has already been corrected in the new Haryana municipal legislation passed by the Assembly in December 2025. However, the new law has still not been brought into force, leaving the State trapped in a legal grey zone.
The controversy now raises an uncomfortable and potentially explosive question:
Have Haryana’s directly elected mayors been functioning for years under a system that lacks explicit statutory backing in the parent law itself?
If the matter reaches court, the State government could face intense judicial scrutiny — and a politically damaging constitutional embarrassment.
Haryana
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