Maha aims to compile empirical data on OBCs within 2 mths

MUMBAI: A day after the supreme court directed the state election commission (SEC) to notify elections to local bodies within two weeks, the poll panel is expected to start the process in the next couple of days, even as its officials said the elections were expected to be held in September-October.

The state government now aims to complete collating the empirical data on the political backwardness of the other backward classes ( OBCs) in two months and approach the apex court urging it to restore the quota.

Chief minister Udhav Thackeray chaired a review meeting on Thursday in the wake of the SC order where all the options to ensure that the elections were held with the OBC quota up to 27% were discussed.

The state government has also requested the Jayant Banthia commission, appointed in March to collect the empirical data, to comply with the triple test criteria laid down by the SC and submit its report at the earliest. The state has decided to not move the apex court seeking a review of the decision as it felt it would not serve the purpose.

Vijay Wadettwiar, other backward classes welfare minister, said, “The SC has not struck down the amendment laws, notified on March 11, to take the powers of delimitation from the SEC. The court has not said anything about it, and hence, we are not going to move for a review. We expect that a report on the empirical data will be submitted to the entire country and not only to Maharashtra. If the Centre enacts a law to allot the quota to OBCs in proportion to their population, the reservation will be restored.”

Bhujbal also said they had requested the Banthia commission to study the methodology adopted by other states for the empirical data so that it would stand the legal scrutiny.

The top court had on March 4, 2021, quashed the political reservation of 27% to OBCs pointing to the K Krishnamurthy judgement given in 2010. The court had asked the state to comply with the triple test, which includes the compilation of the empirical data to establish the political backwardness of OBCs.

SEC officials said they would implement the top court order immediately. “We held consultation with legal experts for the interpretation of the order. The SC has asked us to resume the election process within two weeks. The process of delimitation of wards in various local bodies is at different stages. The notification to direct the local bodies to resume them will be issued soon,” said Kiran Kurundkar, secretary, SEC.

Another official from the state government said the elections would unlikely be held before September- October. “The demarcation of the ward boundaries, reservation draw with suggestions, objections from people, and finalisation of electoral rolls, will take two to three months, stretching it to July. The SEC’s contention that the elections could not be held during the monsoon will have to be taken into consideration by the SC as it cannot risk the process. In such a scenario we can expect the polls to be held before or after Diwali,” the official, who did not wish to be named, said.

Twenty municipal corporations, 25 district councils, 285 panchayat samitis, 210 nagar panchayats, and more than 2,000 gram panchayats are either due or going to be due for polls in the next couple of months.

We expect that report will be submitted next month... We are firm on holding the elections with up to 27% quota to OBCs.