AP high court stays Machilipatnam ward revision process

Vijayawada: The Andhra Pradesh High Court has granted interim relief by staying the ward revision process in the Machilipatnam Municipal Corporation (MMC) for a limited period, while seeking detailed responses from the concerned authorities. The court directed the respondents to file counters containing complete information and clarified that the matter would be taken up by the regular bench after the summer vacation.Justice Tuhin Kumar passed the interim order on Friday while hearing a batch of petitions challenging the ward revision exercises undertaken in both the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) and the MMC.The petitions were filed separately by Narasimha Pratap of Visakhapatnam, Mohammed Khalelur Rahman of Machilipatnam-Inakudurupeta and several others. The petitioners questioned the legality and timing of the ward reorganisation process being carried out by municipal authorities.During the hearing, counsel representing the petitioners argued that ward boundaries should not be altered when the national census process has already commenced. They contended that the authorities were proceeding with the revision exercise despite receiving objections from residents and stakeholders.The petitioners further alleged that the objections submitted by the public had not been adequately considered before moving ahead with the process. They urged the court to intervene and halt the exercise until all legal and procedural concerns were addressed.After hearing the arguments, the high court ordered the authorities to place all relevant details before the court through counter-affidavits. The interim stay on the Machilipatnam ward revision process is expected to remain in force until the matter is taken up for further hearing by the regular bench following the court’s summer recess.