Shimla, Aug. 30 -- The Himachal Pradesh assembly on Friday passed amendments to the Municipal Council and Municipal Corporation Acts, empowering the state government to postpone elections in the newly created local bodies for a period of up to two years despite strong opposition by the main opposition party, the Bharatiya Janata Party. The Opposition legislators registered their protest against the amendment of the Himachal Pradesh Municipal (Amendment) Bill, 2025. Voicing opposition to the Bill, the BJP demanded that the government must take back the bill while urging to de-notify the local bodies which as per the saffron party legislators were created as "against public sentiment and protests by the local people". The BJP MLAs in one voice accused the government of running away from elections and violating the constitutional rights of the people Opposing the amendment, BJP MLAs alleged that the state government was trying to defer elections to all urban local bodies in the state under the garb of OBC reservation considering the public sentiment being against Congress regime. Himachal Pradesh Municipal (Amendment) Bill, 2025, was introduced in the House saying that in Himachal Pradesh, several new municipalities have recently been constituted to accommodate urban expansion and improve municipal services in urban areas. However, it is not feasible to conduct immediate elections as these newly formed municipalities lack essential infrastructure such as adequate personnel, office space, and financial resources necessary to effectively conduct elections and manage municipal affairs. Therefore, Section 14 of the Himachal Pradesh Municipal Act, 1994, has been amended to allow the first election to a municipality to be held within two years of its constitution. Since the legislative assembly was not in session and the amendment had to be made urgently, the Himachal Pradesh Municipal (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025 was promulgated by the governor on August 1, and the notification regarding this was done on August 13. This ordinance is now being replaced by a regular enactment with minor modifications. Despite the protest the amendment was passed by voice vote. Addressing the House, panchayati raj minister Anirudh Singh said that the urban population is growing rapidly and there is an urgent need to regulate the haphazard construction activity. He cited the increase in urban population to 9.16 lakh in 2024, a 60% rise as compared to 2012. Singh assured that there is no constitutional violation in the amendment and that similar deferments have been done in other states like Haryana, Assam and Maharashtra. The minister said the survey of OBC population was done on November 4, 2010, only for rural areas, leaving out the urban areas. "We do not want injustice with the OBCs, so the survey is underway," he said. Leader of Opposition Jai Ram Thakur claimed that the state government is violating constitutional norms and that the amendment will not withstand legal scrutiny. "It is shocking that the state government created three municipal corporations, three Nagar Parishad, and 17 Nagar Panchayats against public sentiment," Thakur said. "In the first place, these should be de-notified as they were created on irrational considerations. If you are rigid and adamant on your decision then why are you running away from holding elections," said Naina Devi MLA Randhir Sharma. Una MLA Satpal Singh Satti said seeing the public mood against the Congress regime, it is apprehended that the state government is preparing ground to postpone elections to all urban local bodies in the state in the garb of OBC reservation. Political tensions escalated in the Himachal Pradesh legislative assembly on Friday as the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) accused the ruling Congress government of shutting down 1,859 institutions established during the previous BJP regime. The charge was strongly rebutted by deputy chief minister Mukesh Agnihotri, who countered that the former government had merely made announcements without laying the groundwork for implementation.Leader of Opposition Jai Ram Thakur alleged that the Congress, during its three-year tenure, has primarily focused on dismantling institutions rather than governance. "This government has only worked to close down the institutions opened by the previous BJP government. They are undoing our developmental initiatives," Thakur said. Responding sharply, deputy CM Agnihotri accused the BJP of making hollow promises during its tenure.In a separate heated exchange during the monsoon session, the issue of extension and re-employment of officers came under sharp scrutiny. BJP MLA from Una Satpal Singh Satti accused the state government of withholding information and questioned the logic behind re-appointing retired officers, especially when HRTC employees and pensioners face delayed payments....