On Tuesday, the Supreme Court requested Maharashtra government and the State election commission to give a detailed account of all the local bodies in which the aggregate reservation is more than the fifty per cent mark. The bench that included Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi made it clear that they can hold elections to these bodies, but the outcome will not be final until the court proceedings are completed.
The guidance was issued when the state was hearing a contempt petition that alleged that the state was contravening the decision of the Supreme Court in 2021 that presented the triple test in the process of granting the OBC reservation at the local bodies. The triple test requires:
- An empirical study, dedicated to establish OBC backwardness, in each local body,
- A clear identification of the actual quota required on OBCs as per the study, and
- There is a need to ensure that the total reservation of SCs, STs and OBCs is not more than the 50% constitutional threshold.
The Court had repeated last week that no local body can violate the 50% cap. In the hearing on Tuesday, the Maharashtra government told the bench that it was in consultation with the State Election Commission with the elections to be held on 246 municipal councils and 42 nagar panchayats on December 2. The poll dates of 32 zila parishads, 336 panchayat samitis and 29 municipal corporations are yet to be announced.
The State Election Commission represented by senior advocate Balbir Singh informed the Court that in 57 bodies, there were more than the limit number of reservations in the bodies going to the polls on December 2. He promised to provide the bench with a complete list of all local bodies in the state by Friday when the case will be reconsidered.
The bench observed that such 57 bodies will continue to face judicial review, whereas those others will be bound to the 50% reservation policy.
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