The Supreme Court asked Maharashtra to consider delaying local body poll nominations while it examines the 27% OBC quota issue. The court warned that continuing the process may complicate elections already under legal scrutiny.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Maharashtra government to think about postponing the nomination process for the upcoming local body elections.
The court said this should be considered until it decides the ongoing dispute about giving 27 per cent reservation to Other Backward Classes (OBCs).
The Bench of Justices Surya Kant, Ujjal Bhuyan and N Kotiswar Singh made this suggestion while fixing November 25 for a detailed hearing. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who represented the state, requested more time to submit additional documents related to the OBC quota matter.
During the hearing, the Bench asked,
“Why can’t you consider deferring the nomination process till we look into the issue?”
Mehta told the court that right now only the nomination stage of the elections was in progress. On the other hand, advocate Amol B Karande opposed the state’s stand and argued that if nominations continued, the election process would become irreversible.
Justice Surya Kant said the court was aware of this concern and asked the petitioners to come back on November 25, the date fixed for hearing the main issues.
Earlier on November 17, the Supreme Court had told the state government that it must not cross the 50 per cent reservation cap in the local body elections, and warned that the elections could be stayed if this rule was broken.
The court also repeated that the elections could only take place according to the situation that existed before the 2022 report of the J K Banthia Commission, which had recommended a 27 per cent OBC quota.
The Bench issued notice on petitions claiming that reservation levels in certain local bodies had gone up to 70 per cent. It reminded everyone that the Banthia Commission’s report is still under the court’s consideration.
The court also referred to its previous orders dated May 6 and September 16, which allowed elections to go ahead but only under the conditions that existed before the Banthia Commission’s recommendations.
Justice Surya Kant pointed out that the court’s orders were meant to be simple but were being made complicated by state authorities.
He noted that delaying the nomination process was a reasonable and practical step, saying officials should not make matters worse. As he remarked,
“simple orders are being complicated by state officials.”
As per the schedule announced by the State Election Commission (SEC) on November 4, polling for 246 municipal councils and 42 nagar panchayats will take place on December 2, and counting will be held on December 3.
The last date to file nominations was November 17, scrutiny took place on November 18, withdrawals were allowed up to November 21, and the final list of candidates along with symbols will be published on November 26.
For several years, the Supreme Court has been overseeing the process of local body elections in Maharashtra because of continuous disputes over OBC reservation. On September 16, the court had directed the state to complete all pending delimitation work by October 31, 2025.
It also said that elections to all local bodies—including zila parishads and municipalities—must be conducted by January 31, 2026, without any extensions.
Earlier, on May 6, the court had cleared the way for the long-pending local body polls by directing the SEC to announce election dates within four weeks. However, the court made it clear that OBC reservation must follow the legal framework that existed before the Banthia Commission report.
The Maharashtra government had also issued an ordinance granting 27 per cent OBC reservation in local body elections and later asked the Supreme Court to reconsider its order that prevented the re-notification of elections.
However, on July 28, 2022, the court warned the SEC that it could face contempt if it attempted to restart the election process in 367 local bodies.
This entire issue goes back to 2021, when the Supreme Court cancelled the SEC’s notification that provided 27 per cent OBC reservation, stating that such a quota cannot be allowed unless the state fulfils the “triple test” laid down in a 2010 judgment.
The Supreme Court will now hear the matter again on November 25.
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