The ordinance will allow for the OBC quota in rural bodies, with the rider that once combined with SC and ST reservations, the combined quota will not cross the 50% limit. Also, the OBC quota will not cross 27% of the seats, in keeping with the existing state legislation.
“This means that the OBC quota could be 10-12% lower than before. In predominantly tribal districts where the ST quota is high, the OBC quota will be very low or absent. In urban areas where STs are very few, the OBC quota could be higher,” said state food and civil supplies minister Chhagan Bhujbal. The state is following the route taken by other states, including Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, he added.
The state faces polls to six zilla parishads and their panchayat samitis on October 5.
Quota ordinance for urban local body elections likely in a week
The opposition welcomed the ordinance but said it will not help in the upcoming polls. “In five of the six zilla parishads going to the polls, the OBC quota will be negligible since the SC and ST quota is high,” said former chief minister and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis.
The ordinance is expected to be issued this week. By next week, a similar ordinance is expected to be issued to allow for the OBC quota in urban local bodies, sources said. Polls in ten key municipal corporations in the state, including the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, are slated to be held early next year. The BMC polls are due in February.
Sources say that in each local body, the state will first earmark the seats reserved for SCsand STs since this is a constitutionally mandated reservation. This SC/ST quota is based on the community’s count in the population. Once this is done, seats will be reserved for OBCs, ensuring that the combined quota does not cross 50%. The OBC reservation itself will not be allowed to cross 27% since this was the quota mandated by the state.
In March, the apex court had quashed the 27% reservation for OBCs in Maharashtra’s local bodies on the grounds that the reservations, combined with those for SCs and STs, exceeded the 50% quota limit. The OBC quota could only be permitted after empirical data on the community was collected and if the 50% quota limit was not crossed, the SC had said.
The empirical data on OBCs is yet to be collected by the state’s backward class commission and the exercise could take months.
When asked whether the state’s ordinance will stand in the Supreme Court, cabinet minister Chhagan Bhujbal said, “The ordinance will ensure that the 50% quota limit will not be crossed. But this is a stop-gap arrangement. We will collect empirical data on OBCs and submit it to the court,” he said.
The opposition welcomed the ordinance but said that getting the empirical data is vital for a permanent solution. “Also, in some local bodies, the OBC quota will be very low because the SC and ST quota is high. There should be some solution for this as well,” said Fadnavis. who is now leader of opposition in th e state legislative assembly.
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