Delimitation of Goa municipal wards to be done by SEC:Parrikar

The Goa government will hand over its power to delimit and reserve wards in municipal and panchayat areas to the State Election Commission (SEC), Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar told the Legislative Assembly today.
He said necessary amendments will be made in legislations to enable the SEC to delimit or reserve wards.
"We will make necessary amendment to the related Acts (legislations) to hand over the responsibility of delimitation and reservation of Panchayat and Municipality wards to the SEC," Parrikar told the House.
He said the SEC will have to complete the work of reservation and delimitation, a year prior to elections.

Parrikar was responding to an apprehension raised by the Opposition leaders over "illogical reservation and delimitation of wards in municipalities and panchayats".
Referring to Panchayat elections held in June this year, NCP MLA Churchill Alemao said, "Ahead of those elections, people went to the High Court and even secured the stay. To avoid such kind of confusions, the SEC should be made in charge of the process and not the state government".
The elections for 180-odd panchayat bodies were held on June 11 and results were announced on June 13.