From Our Bureau
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday okayed the Other Backward Classes (OBC) quota in the Madhya Pradesh local body elections that was refused in case of Maharashtra on May 4. It gave a 2-week deadline to declare the election schedule.
Its decision came after the Madhya Pradesh government revised an earlier report which was objected by the court.
A 3-judge Bench of Justices A M Khanwilkar, Abhay S Oka and J B Pardiwala gave the go-ahead for local body polls in Madhya Pradesh with OBC reservation, allowing th state government to notify the reservation pattern as recommended in the second report of the State Backward Classes Commission.
It took into account the MP Government’s submission that an earlier report which the court had objected to has been revised and the delimitation exercise has already been completed and notified.
“For the time being, we permit the Madhya Pradesh state election commission to notify the programme for the respective local bodies keeping in mind the delimitation notification already issued as on date .i.e. till today and the report submitted by the dedicated commission…,” the Supreme Court ordered.
“We permit the state of Madhya Pradesh to notify the reservation pattern local body wise to be adhered to by the state election commission within one week. The state election commission shall notify the election programme in respect of the concerned local bodies thereafter within one week,” the order said.
On May 10, the court had directed that the elections to the local bodies in Madhya Pradesh be notified within two weeks without providing for OBC reservation as the state was yet to complete the triple test laid down by the SC before providing for such reservation. The same kind of order was passed in case of Maharashtra on May 4.
Subsequently, the MP government again approached the court seeking permission to implement the OBC quota saying that the first report of the commission was revised keeping in view the concerns expressed by the court and contended that the second report satisfies the triple test requirement.
The bench which perused the second report said it focuses on the local body wise reservation for OBCs by keeping in mind the maximum reservation limit of 50 per cent as laid down by the Supreme Court.
However, it added that this should not be seen as an expression of any final opinion by the court on the validity or correctness of the report and if someone challenges it, that may have to be considered on its own merits in accordance with law.
