Jaipur, Dec. 20 -- The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a petition challenging the delimitation process, election timeline and appointment of administrators in local bodies across Rajasthan, and upheld the schedule fixed by the Rajasthan high court for holding elections by April 2026 to Panchayati Raj Institutions and Municipalities. Additional Advocate General Shiv Mangal Sharma said a bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, justices Joymala Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi declined to interfere with the high court's judgment dated November 14, which had permitted completion of a state-wide delimitation exercise prior to elections and directed that the electoral process be concluded on or before 15 April, 2026. The petition assailed the court's decision rendered in a batch of writ petitions, including DB Civil Writ Petition, questioning the legality of the ongoing delimitation of Panchayat and municipal wards, the postponement of elections beyond the five-year term of elected bodies, and the continuation of Administrators during interregnum. It was stated in the plea that elections to local bodies must be conducted immediately upon expiry of their tenure under Articles 243E and 243U of the Constitution, and that delimitation could not be used as a ground to defer the democratic process. The high court, after hearing a batch of petitions, upheld the statutory powers of the state government under - section 101 of the Rajasthan Panchayati Raj Act, 1994, and sections 3 and 8 of Rajasthan Municipalities Act, 2009, to undertake a comprehensive delimitation exercise prior to elections. The AAG said the Supreme Court refused to entertain the petition and declined to interfere with the timeline fixed by the Rajasthan high court. It accepted the state's submission that the high court had already ensured a time-bound electoral process....