Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 16 (UNI) Members elected to local self-government institutions in Kerala will assume office after taking the oath or affirmation on December 21, the State Election Commissioner, A Shahjahan, has announced.
The State Election Commission (SEC) has issued detailed guidelines for conducting the oath-taking ceremonies. According to the guidelines, the senior-most elected member or councillor in each local body will take the oath first, in the presence of officials authorised by the government.
In municipal corporations and district panchayats, District Collectors have been entrusted with administering the oath, while in gram and block panchayats the designated Returning Officers of the respective institutions will perform this duty.
In municipal councils, the Returning Officers appointed for the purpose will administer the oath to the first member.
The senior-most member who takes the oath first will then administer the oath or affirmation to the remaining elected members. All elected members will be issued written notices regarding the oath-taking.
The oath-taking proceedings will begin at 10 am on December 21 in gram panchayats, block panchayats, district panchayats and municipal councils, while in municipal corporations the ceremony will commence at 11.30 am.
Immediately after the oath-taking ceremony, the first meeting of all elected members will be convened under the chairmanship of the senior-most member who took the oath first.
At this meeting, the Secretary will read out the Election Commission’s notification related to the election of the chairperson and vice-chairperson.
The Commission has directed District Election Officers to monitor the proceedings to ensure that all formalities are completed on time and to submit reports to the Commission.
Meanwhile, the State Election Commissioner has directed candidates who contested the local body elections to submit their election expenditure accounts online on or before January 12, 2026.
All candidates are required to file their expenditure statements within 30 days from the date of declaration of results to the respective local body secretaries.
Candidates must submit the details by logging into the Election Expenditure Module on the Commission’s website.
Those unable to submit the accounts online may submit the expenditure statements in person along with supporting documents such as bills, receipts and vouchers.
The expenditure account should cover the period from the date of nomination to the date of declaration of results and must include expenses incurred by the candidate or the election agent.
Self-attested copies of receipts, vouchers and bills should be submitted along with the account, while the originals should be retained by the candidate for verification if required.
The Commission warned that failure to submit election expenditure accounts would invite disqualification from contesting or continuing as a member of local body institutions for a period of five years from the date of the order.
Disqualification will also apply if a candidate is found to have exceeded the prescribed expenditure limit or furnished false information.
The maximum permissible election expenditure has been fixed at Rs 25,000 for gram panchayats, Rs 75,000 each for block panchayats and municipalities, and Rs 1.5 lakh for municipal corporations and district panchayats.
Kerala local body representatives to take oath on Dec 21
