Mumbai: BMC elections likely to be pushed back over OBC quota

All parties unanimously agree there can’t be polls without resolving the issue of OBC quota in local government bodies

If unresolved, the issue of OBC reservation in local bodies along with the pandemic could postpone civic elections scheduled to be held next year, beginning with Mumbai, Thane and other major corporations. Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray held an all-party meeting on Friday over the issue, but the discussion was inconclusive.

All parties that attended the Friday meeting demanded that the local polls be postponed if there is a delay in granting the reservation. Among notable invitees who skipped the meeting was MNS president Raj Thackeray.

The Supreme Court earlier this year stayed political reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in the state’s local government bodies.

Difference over data

Sources said the parties differed on gathering of empirical data. While some said the Centre should provide it, the BJP and others said the state can conduct a survey for political backwardness.

The parties will meet again next week and the government will come back with clarity and proposal on the points raised by the parties on the SC verdict. The order was in a case related to five districts where the 28 per cent quota for the OBCs was disproportionate to their population. 

The SC had stated that the total reservation can’t exceed 50 per cent.

The CM, in a statement, said all parties were unanimous in reinstating the political reservation. “All parties do not want the elections to be held without OBC quota. We will meet again after studying the views expressed in the meeting to arrive at a unanimous decision,” he said while welcoming the all-party unity.

‘Fulfil conditions ASAP’

Opposition leader Devendra Fadnavis said he has strongly suggested the SC’s directions for conducting the triple test. 

“We don’t accept when someone says ‘we won’t give quota to all OBCs in the state because of the SC verdict’. The state must reclaim the allowed quantum of quota wherever possible and make a new law to have it in the districts where it has been disputed,” he said.

He added that the State Backward Class Commission can alone prepare empirical data on the OBC political backwardness. “The state government had collected such data for the Maratha quota in four months. It is possible even now. I have explained in the meeting how it can be done in three months.”

‘Quota can’t push polls’

Sources in the State Election Commission said that the OBC quota issue does not warrant postponing the polls. 

“However, a third Covid-19 wave, if any, can surely give the government a reason to recommend us to delay the elections. 

The commission had already delayed elections to some municipal corporations, which were due last year,” said a senior official.

CM, Fadnavis hold closed-door meet

CM Udhhav Thackeray and Fadnavis held closed-door talks after the all-party meeting at Sahyadri guesthouse, amid the ongoing slugfest between the Shiv Sena and the BJP. The interaction lasted over 10 minutes, said people in the know. When asked, Fadnavis told mid-day that it was a courtesy interaction between the chief Minister and the Opposition leader.

50
The percentage cap on reservation by the SC

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