📷 Image: Wikimedia Commons / Meghalaya High Court
Politics
Meghalaya HC Strikes Down GHADC Order Requiring ST Certificate for Election Nominations
✍️ LawStreet Journal
🗓 10 Aug 2026, 12:18 PM
👁 16
The Meghalaya High Court has annulled a Garo Hills Autonomous District Council order that made a Scheduled Tribe certificate mandatory for candidates contesting elections, ruling that the directive violated constitutional rights.
The Meghalaya High Court on Tuesday struck down an order issued by the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC) that required candidates to submit a Scheduled Tribe (ST) certificate to qualify for election nominations.
The GHADC had earlier imposed the ST certificate requirement on all candidates seeking nomination in the district’s elections, a move that critics argued discriminated against non‑ST voters and candidates. The High Court found that the order infringed upon the fundamental right to equality and the right to contest elections.
In its judgment, the court emphasized that the Constitution does not grant a local body the power to impose such a restriction on the electoral process. The ruling restores the status quo, allowing all eligible voters and candidates to participate without the ST certificate hurdle.
The decision is expected to ease the nomination process for upcoming elections in Meghalaya and could set a precedent for similar challenges against local electoral orders across India.
The GHADC had earlier imposed the ST certificate requirement on all candidates seeking nomination in the district’s elections, a move that critics argued discriminated against non‑ST voters and candidates. The High Court found that the order infringed upon the fundamental right to equality and the right to contest elections.
In its judgment, the court emphasized that the Constitution does not grant a local body the power to impose such a restriction on the electoral process. The ruling restores the status quo, allowing all eligible voters and candidates to participate without the ST certificate hurdle.
The decision is expected to ease the nomination process for upcoming elections in Meghalaya and could set a precedent for similar challenges against local electoral orders across India.