SC Cracks Whip on Maharashtra: Local Body Polls Must Be Held Within Four Months, Ends 2-Year OBC Quota Deadlock

New Delhi: In a major push to restore grassroots democracy in Maharashtra, the Supreme Court on Monday, May 6, directed the State Election Commission (SEC) to notify and complete long-pending local body elections within four months. The polls had been stalled for nearly two years due to legal tussles over Other Backward Class (OBC) reservations.

A bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and N.K. Singh passed an interim order mandating that elections be held based on the pre-Banthia Commission OBC reservation framework. The Court directed that the SEC must issue the election notification within four weeks, ensuring that the entire electoral process is concluded within the next four months.

“This interim direction shall be subject to the final outcome of petitions challenging the validity of the Banthia Commission report and shall not prejudice any party’s arguments,” the bench clarified.

The Banthia Commission, constituted by the Maharashtra government, had submitted its report in July 2022 recommending changes to OBC quotas in local bodies. Its findings have since been challenged in court, stalling the democratic process across thousands of urban and rural local bodies in the state.

Raising concerns about the breakdown of grassroots governance, Justice Surya Kant said, “Bureaucrats are making major policy decisions in the absence of elected representatives. This goes against the constitutional mandate of local self-governance, which must be respected and ensured.”

Questioning the delay, Justice Kant asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who appeared for the state, why the elections could not be held under the existing OBC quota. “You’ve already identified certain OBC groups under the law. Why can’t elections be held on that basis, pending the outcome of litigation?” he asked, as reported by LiveLaw.

Agreeing with the Court’s sentiment, the Solicitor General acknowledged that elections should not remain stalled indefinitely.

Senior advocate Indira Jaising, appearing for the petitioner, also backed immediate elections but warned against implementing the Banthia Commission’s recommendations, which she said had de-reserved nearly 34,000 OBC seats. She argued that this undermined political representation and democratic participation of marginalized communities.

Jaising added, “Democratic bodies across all levels, from gram panchayats to zilla parishads, are being run by unelected officials, which violates democratic norms.”