Haryana: CPI(M) Dismayed Over SC Verdict

THE Haryana state committee of the CPI(M) has expressed shock over the Supreme Court judgement upholding the Haryana government’s “only two-child” norm requisite for persons contesting elections to local bodies.

Reacting to the judgement delivered on July 30, the party has stated that the Supreme Court has surprisingly overlooked the fundamental right against discrimination guaranteed under the Constitution. “This right virtually stands denied by the act of the Haryana assembly imposing the two child norm for those seeking elections to the panchayats and municipal committees. This condition effectively debars otherwise qualifying men and women from local governance,” opined the CPI(M) in a statement on July 30. The Supreme Court gave this judgement while dealing with hundreds of writ petitions filed by the unseated elected representatives of Haryana.

The CPI(M) state committee recalled that it had raised serious objections when the disputed clause was arbitrarily added while ratifying the 73rd and 74th constitutional amendments by the Haryana assembly along with certain other states. The main contention of the CPI(M) to the two child condition was that apart from it being ultra vires of the Constitution, it also goes against the very spirit of the process of decentralisation of power.

The other basic objection raised by the Party and the AIDWA was that a woman would be disqualified for an act in which she hardly had any decision-making role (regarding the number of children in the family). Moreover it is a recognised fact that the size of the family has a direct relation with the socio-economic conditions of the various social strata.  Therefore, population control can least be achieved by such undemocratic and shortsighted measures that infringe upon the citizens right at the grass root level, stated the CPI(M) state committee.