Cuttack, Nov. 3: Orissa High Court has refused to interfere further in disputes over delimitation of wards under Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC).

Clarifying that the state election commission would be the appropriate forum to resolve any dispute on the state government’s fresh notification, the court declined to adjudicate on a petition challenging it.

Conducting civic polls for formation of new council of Cuttack Municipal Corporation before the council’s term expired on September 30 was not possible due to adjudication of a dispute over the delimitation process for four months in the court from May.

Earlier, in May, the high court had nullified the state government’s notification increasing the number of wards under CMC from 48 to 54 under the delimitation process.

The court had also ordered for fresh notification when the splitting of existing wards to constitute six new wards and fresh reservation of wards on the basis of population was challenged through a writ petition. The dispute was resolved when the high court on September 10 granted the state government time till October 8 to issue the final notification afresh taking into consideration objections and appeals. Subsequently, the state government issued a final notification afresh on October 10.

The delimitation issue reached the high court again when Chiranjay Sahu, a former corporator, challenged the fresh notification alleging that norms were not followed for reservation of wards. Though objections were raised at the draft notification stage, a hearing on it was denied, he said.