Maharashtra local body polls: SC orders Maharashtra SEC to cap reservation at 50

The Supreme Court on Friday directed the Maharashtra State Election Commission SEC not to issue notifications exceeding 50 per cent OBC reservation in local bodies where elections have not yet been announcedThe bench also clarified that the outcome of elections for which notifications with reservations above 50 per cent have already been issued will be determined based on the pending petitions challenging them The observations were made by a bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya BagchiThe apex court allowed the SEC to proceed with local body elections in areas where the electoral process is already underway including regions where nominations have been filed and voting is scheduledHowever the Court highlighted that in 40 Municipal Councils and 17 District Nagar Panchayats the OBC reservation exceeds the 50 per cent ceiling The process of elections to a total of 246 municipal councils and 42 municipal panchayats has begun in the stateThe elections to 29 municipal corporations and 346 panchayat committees have not been announced yetThe court referred the matter to a threejudge bench and directed that the next hearing be held on January 21 and allowed the elections for which notifications have been issued to be held as per the scheduleReacting to the Supreme Courtrsquos direction that the OBC quota in upcoming Maharashtra local body elections must remain within the 50 per cent limit Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar said the decision leaves the entire electoral process ldquounder a hanging swordrdquoWadettiwar said that while elections may go ahead holding them before the courtrsquos final verdict would keep OBC representation in uncertainty He criticised the government for celebrating its decision to grant 27 per cent reservation to OBCs arguing that the quota is now ldquounder threatrdquoHe pointed out that although the court has instructed the state to begin the process for Zila Parishad and Municipal Corporation elections it has also made it clear that polls cannot proceed in places where reservations exceed the 50 per cent ceilingAccusing the government of ldquodeceiving the OBC communityrdquo Wadettiwar said the final outcome of the elections would ultimately depend on the Supreme Courtrsquos ruling ldquoSo where has the 27 per cent OBC reservation gone The BJP has misled our OBC brothers and exposed its own deceitrdquo he addedVIDEO Chandrapur On Supreme Courts direction that OBC quota in upcoming Maharashtra local body polls must stay below the 5037 limit Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar VijayWadettiwar says ldquoIf elections are to be held then the results will remain under a hanging swordhellip pictwittercomIJUkwuYSckmdash Press Trust of India PTI_News November 28 2025During the hearing at the Supreme Court on Friday the petition alleged breach of OBC reservation norms in municipal council polls However the Supreme Court made it clear that the SEC can proceed with the election but the results will be dependent on the final outcome of the case The bench also said the state poll panel may proceed with the elections for other zila parishad panchayat samiti and nagar parishad where the issue of breach of 50 per cent quota is not there However the results of these local bodies will also depend on the final verdict in the case the bench saidShiv Sena leader Shaina NC welcomed the Supreme Courtrsquos directive on maintaining the 50 per cent reservation cap in Maharashtrarsquos upcoming local body elections saying the order leaves no room for ambiguityldquoThe Supreme Court has made it very clear that for the yettobenotified elections mdash including 29 municipal corporations 32 zilla parishads and 346 panchayat samitis mdash the State Election Commission must ensure that reservation remains strictly within the 50 per cent limit and any notification must reflect this caprdquo she saidShaina NC added that the party respects the courtrsquos verdict noting that the outcome for notified bodies will remain subject to the Courtrsquos final judgment ldquoThere is no need to question this further The remaining local body elections in Maharashtra must be conducted without breaching the 50 per cent cap Let us welcome this decisionrdquo she saidShe pointed out that 246 municipal councils and 42 Nagar Panchayats already notified for polling on December 2 will continue as scheduled ldquoLetrsquos adhere to the timeline and the Supreme Courtrsquos guidelinesrdquo she saidEarlier on Tuesday the Supreme Court bench hearing petitions challenging OBC reservation in Maharashtrarsquos local body elections indicated that it would allow the polls to proceed However it clarified that in alreadynotified seats any reservation breaching the 50 per cent cap will be subject to its final ruling and in seats yet to be notified the quota cannot exceed the 50 per cent limitVIDEO Maharashtra local body polls Shiv Sena leader Shaina NC saysThe Supreme Court has made it very clear that the yettobenotified elections including the 29 municipal corporations 32 zilla parishads and 346 panchayat samathis the court has directed the State Electionhellip pictwittercomrsspPeNTfimdash Press Trust of India PTI_News November 28 2025