Dehradun, June 24 -- Uttarakhand high court on Monday stayed the the upcoming panchayat elections in the state amid dispute over the reservation rotation process for the three-tier polls, and directed the government to submit its response in the matter at the earliest. The panchayat elections were scheduled to be held in two phases - July 10 and 15. The division bench of Chief Justice G Narender and Justice Alok Meara passed the order while hearing separate petitions filed by Ganesh Datt Kandpal and Virendra Singh Butola. Shobit Saharia, counsel of Kandpal said he argued that the reservation criteria set by the government for the ongoing panchayat elections were flawed. "We argued that the reservation rules framed by the state had not been officially notified in the government gazette, rendering the entire reservation process invalid," Saharia said in a statement. He said, "Earlier, during a hearing on June 20, the bench had sought a clarification from the state government on this matter. However, during Monday's proceedings, the government failed to present a satisfactory explanation on why reservation rules framed by the state had not been officially notified in the government gazette, as mandated in section 126 of Uttarakhand Panchayati Raj Act 2016" According to section 126 of the Act, "The State Government may by notification in the Gazette make rules consistent with this Act in respect of any matter or matters for which the powers of making rules is expressly or by implication conferred by this Act, and may also make rules which are otherwise requisite for carrying out the purposes of this Act" On behalf of the state government, it was argued that the panchayat elections had already been notified and, as per Supreme Court directions, the judiciary should not intervene in the election process. Advocate general SN Babulkar informed the court that the entire government machinery was engaged in conducting the elections and halting the process would be inappropriate. Sanjay Bhatt, counsel of state election commission in the matter said, "After hearing all arguments, the HC issued a stay on the entire election process. The court also instructed the state to file a prompt response in the matter". After the HC order, state government issued a statement on the matter. Secretary Panchayati Raj Chandresh Kumar said, "The process of notification (gazette notification) of rules related to reservation system in three-tier panchayat elections is under progress. HC has passed an interim stay order which is being properly complied with". He said that the copy of the gazette notification of Reservation Rules 2025 is being printed at the Government Press Roorkee. "A copy of the notification will be issued by evening and presented before the Court on Tuesday, so that proper judicial guidance can be obtained by making it aware of the situation", he said. He also clarified that the State Government is committed to conduct the Panchayati Raj system in a constitutional and legal manner while respecting the full dignity and instructions of the court. On Saturday, Uttarakhand state election commissioner Sushil Kumar had announced that three tier panchayat elections will be held in two phases across 12 districts, except Haridwar. The voting for the first phase of the panchayat elections is scheduled to be held on July 10, followed by the second phase on July 15. The counting of votes will take place on July 19....