Delhi HC slams Centre for failing to hold Cantonment Boards’ elections

The Delhi High Court on Monday (December 1, 2025) criticised the Union Government for failing to hold Cantonment Boards’ elections across the country for more than five years. The Boards fall under the Ministry of Defence.

Noting that India is a democratic country and hence there is a need to have democratically elected Cantonment Boards, a Division Bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela pulled up the Centre for issuing multiple  notifications to govern the boards with officials. 

The Bench said, “Special notifications could only be issued on special occasions, such as in the case of a military operation. It said the government’s act might be seen as a misuse of its powers.”

Issuing notice to the Union Government and the Director General Defence Estates (DGDE) on a plea filed by Sandeep Tanwar and Yogesh Kumar, the Court directed them to file a response explaining the reasons for delay in polls and repeated issuance of notices under Section 13.

The case will be heard on March 11, 2026. The plea filed by Mr. Tanwar and Mr. Kumar, residents of Delhi and Agra cantonments, stated that the government had failed to conduct the polls for more than a decade. They alleged a bid to alter the constitution of the Cantonment Boards.

The Centre’s counsel stated that the Cantonment Boards’ polls were delayed because the government was mulling steps to bring uniformity in the municipal laws and the cantonments. The proposal of merger or accession of civil areas of certain Cantonment Boards to their adjoining municipal bodies was also under consideration.

There are currently around 60 Cantonment Boards spread across various States. These boards manage civic issues in areas. The last polls took place in January 2015 and the tenure of those members ended in 2020.