Constitutional complaint – referral of municipal elections: towards a first verdict from the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court heard the trial on Friday, March 22, 2024, relating to the constitutional complaint filed by attorney Ashley Ramdass. The latter contests the postponement of municipal elections to Quatre-Bornes. He asks the Supreme Court to invalidate the amendments allowing the postponement of the said elections.

At the helm, Me Ashley Ramdass described as “undemocratic” the amendments to the Local Government Act which allowed the postponement of municipal elections until June 2025. “No reason has been put forward to justify the said postponement, unlike 2021, where two dismissals had taken place due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” he argued.

During his pleading, Me Antoine Domingue spoke of “a striking contrast” between the referral of the municipal elections to Mauritius and the general elections in Rodrigues, which took place on February 27, 2022. “It seems that our Rodriguan brothers and sisters are well better off than those who have the misfortune of residing in the towns and villages of the Mauritian island where a two-speed democracy now exists,” said the Senior Counsel.

Me Tawheen Choomka, representing the Quatre-Bornes town hall, indicated, for his part, that the amendment in question does not constitute a violation of article 1 of the Constitution and that the presumption of constitutionality should prevail.

After the oral arguments, Chief Justice Bibi Rehana Mungly-Gulbul and Senior Puisne Judge (SPJ), Nirmala Devat, reserved their verdict.