COLLECT...

tion to the OBC within the 50% reservation cap mandated by the Supreme Court.

The political reservation of Other Backward Classes (OBC) in local bodies is on the verge of getting scrapped, following an Apex Court verdict. While scrapping the OBC reservation in local bodies, it had asked the state to collect empirical data of the community to decide on the reservation quota, which means the community will not get reservation until it is collected.

This is the second meeting held by the chief minister in the past one week to resolve the issue. The exercise started after the state election commission recently directed to start preparations for local bodies’ polls due early next year and hold elections without OBC reservation. The move would create unrest in the community which is politically damaging for the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government. “The directives will be issued to the MSCBC to complete the process of collecting empirical data as early as possible. They will also be asked to take the help of state advocate general (Ashutosh Kumbhakoni),” Thackeray said. “It was also unanimously decided that if there is a delay in getting the desired data then the proposed local bodies’ polls be deferred,” the chief minister said in a statement issued by the chief minister office (CMO).

“The state will work on multiple alternatives. While directing the MSCBC to collect the empirical data in less time, we will continue our legal battle in the Apex Court, where we have already filed a petition seeking caste-based census data from the central government,” said Chhagan Bhujbal, food and civil supplies minister, who is also an OBC leader.

The state government has filed a writ petition in the Apex Court seeking Socio Economic Caste Census, 2011 data from the

Centre. The next hearing is going to be held on September 23.

“In addition, the state may come up with an ordinance to provide reservation to the OBC community without breaching the 50% reservation cap mandated by the SC. The option will be used if there is a delay in obtaining empirical data and local bodies’ elections cannot be deferred,” Bhujbal explained.

The state is planning to bring in an amendment in the local bodies acts that provides 27% reservation to the OBC community. It is of the view that the existing amendment be tweaked saying that 50% cap will not be breached and the OBC will get remaining percent reservation after providing quota to Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities.

Section 12(2)(c) of the Maharashtra Zilla Parishads and Panchayat Samitis Act, 1961, provides a 27% quota for persons belonging to backward classes, which was challenged in the court of law. The legislation for the local bodies in Maharashtra provides reservation to the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities based on their population in those particular bodies, whereas in case of OBC this population data is not available as their last census was conducted in 1931. As a result, there are many districts where the combined reservation of all the communities exceeds 50% cap.

Even after amendments, there are three to five districts where OBCS will not get reservation benefits. Leader of opposition Devendra Fadnavis said that around 15% seats will be reduced in the local bodies’ polls in the absence of empirical data. “The state law and judiciary department has taken a positive stand on bringing in the amendment in the legislation to provide reservation to the OBC community in case there is a delay in getting empirical data. Despite that, there are around three districts where the OBC community will not get reservation. Of the total 5,200 seats reserved for the OBC community, around 4,500 seats can be saved by bringing in the amendment, according to the chief secretary (Sitaram Kunte),” Fadnavis told reporters after the meeting at Sahyadri guest house, Malabar Hill.

If empirical data is collected in the next 3-4 months, the issue will be resolved as elections are going to be held only after that, he added.

On March 4, the Supreme Court ruled that the reservation in favour of the OBC in local bodies should not result in exceeding the 50% cap in reservation quota mandated by it. It has directed the state to appoint a dedicated commission for collecting empirical data, based on which the reservation quota of the community be fixed and also allowed the state election commission to hold local bodies polls without having reservations for OBCS. It means no seat will be reserved for OBC community candidates for any local body elections until empirical data is made available.

On July 5, the state legislature also passed a resolution seeking empirical data by the Centre, collected under Socio Economic Caste Census 2011, for restoration of political reservation to OBCS.