7 months ago
2
The State of Telangana has approached the Supreme Court against a State High Court determination to enactment 2 authorities orders which enhanced the Other Backward Classes (OBC) quota successful seats successful municipalities and panchayats to 42%.
“Petitioner person implemented the preservation based connected the volition of the people,” the State said successful its peculiar permission petition filed connected October 13.
Polling for Telangana section bodies elections are scheduled connected October 23 and 27.
The enhancement of 42% successful OBC unneurotic with the existing 15% for Scheduled Castes and 10% for Scheduled Tribes, would marque the aggregate preservation to 67%, straight violating the 50% ceiling.
“The High Court committed an mistake by granting enactment connected the Government Orders which person provided preservation for Backward classes successful the section bodies election. There is nary embargo per se connected reservations exceeding 50%. There exists nary bounds wrong the law model vis a vis the permitted percent of reservation,” Telangana argued.
It said the 50% headdress was lone a “general guiding principle”.
“As a regularisation of prudence 50% was acceptable out, portion permitting the preservation to spell beyond the aforesaid successful exceptional circumstances,” Telangana argued.
The 50% ceiling regularisation successful preservation was established by a nine-judge Bench of the Supreme Court successful the Mandal Commission lawsuit judgement of 1992.
“While 50% shall beryllium the rule, it is indispensable not to enactment retired of information definite bonzer situations inherent successful the large diverseness of this state and the people. It mightiness hap that successful farflung and distant areas the colonisation inhabiting those areas might, connected relationship of their being retired of the mainstream of nationalist beingness and successful presumption of conditions peculiar to and characteristical to them, request to beryllium treated successful a antithetic way, immoderate relaxation successful this strict regularisation whitethorn go imperative,” Telangana submitted.
Telangana further said it had done the ‘triple test’, and based the 42% OBC quota was decided aft undertaking a “comprehensive and technological workout to find the grade of preservation required for backward classes successful section bodies”.
“A elaborate Socio-Economic, Educational, Employment Political and Caste Survey [SEEEPC Survey, 2024–25] was conducted which revealed that Backward Classes represent astir 56.33% of the full colonisation successful Telangana which information formed the instauration for providing 42% preservation for Backward Classes. This workout was undertaken arsenic per the mandate of Article 342-A(3) of the Constitution,” Telangana explained.
The State had constituted a One-Man Commission nether the Chairmanship of Busani Venkateshwara Rao, IAS (Retd.) to analyse the empirical information and the Commission, aft thorough analysis, recommended 42% preservation for Backward Classes successful agrarian and municipality section bodies and the proposal were accepted by the government.
Accordingly, the Telangana Backward Classes (Reservation of Seats successful Rural and Urban Local Bodies) Bill, 2025 was unanimously passed by some the Houses of the Legislature connected March 17 and March 18, which inter alia provides for 42% preservation for BCs successful municipality and agrarian section bodies. The Bill was sent to the Governor, who had reserved the Bill for the information of the President connected March 30.
The Home Ministry had sought clarifications connected the Bill and Telangana had answered connected July 22. However, the Bill was neither been returned nor assented to this date.
