Chandigarh, April 8 -- The Punjab government on Tuesday dissolved nine municipal corporations and 102 municipal councils and nagar panchayats, removing all elected mayors and local representatives from office. The local government department's notification said that the dissolution follows the completion of their legal five-year terms. Administrative officers, particularly district magistrates, will manage the day-to-day functioning and essential services in the urban areas. The delay in holding fresh elections is largely due to ongoing legal battles over ward delimitation and the upcoming national census. While the state initially moved to redraw municipal boundaries to reflect population shifts, the process was met with a series of petitions in the high court. Critics argued that the delimitation exercise violated federal guidelines, specifically a central government notification that froze administrative boundaries in anticipation of the 2027 census. The court recently intervened, stalling the election process and prompting the Punjab government to withdraw delimitation notifications issued after December 2025.HTC...