Guwahati, Jan 10 (PTI) Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the panchayat polls could be held in February if the Gauhati High Court judgement on the petitions filed over it is made available by Friday midnight, or else it will have to be deferred.

Speaking to reporters after chairing a meeting of the state cabinet, Sarma said if the judgement, "whether positive or negative", is not received by midnight, the polls will have to be deferred till after the completion of the school board exams, which will begin on February 14.

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"I have been told by the advocate general that the judgement is being dictated and we are waiting for it. If it comes before midnight, the notification for the polls can be issued and it can be held in two phases -- on February 10 and 12," he said.

"Governments usually do not want to conduct panchayat elections, particularly before assembly elections, as they do not want to take risks but we are eager to hold it," he added.

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The high court had earlier directed the State Election Commission not to issue any notification for holding panchayat polls without its permission till January 9 after hearing several writ petitions, mainly challenging the delimitation exercise.

Sarma said this is only due to 19 panchayats in the Karimganj Lok Sabha constituency as Congress leader Hafiz Rashid Ahmed Choudhury, who lost the parliamentary polls from the seat, along with some opposition leaders are trying to derail the democratic process.

The CM said that once deferred, he is not sure "what the situation will be like after the examinations are over, there will be floods and other problems may come up".

Before the petitions were filed in the court, the state government had announced the completion of the polls by February 10.

Sarma said panchayat polls were necessary for democracy at the grassroots level.

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