Supreme Court Mandates Maharashtra's Local Body Polls Notification

The Supreme Court has instructed the Maharashtra state election commission to announce local body elections within the next four weeks. The decision was passed by Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh, focusing on the ongoing debate over OBC reservations, which will now operate under pre-2022 guidelines.

The directive requires the commission to conduct a census to accurately determine OBC representation and allocate 27 percent of local body seats to this group. The court's timeline for finalizing the polls is set at four months, though the state election commission can request more time if necessary.

The outcome of these elections will be contingent on pending legal petitions. The apex court's past decisions emphasized not proceeding with reservations unless the state completes a 'triple test' to validate OBC representation. Previous SEC actions in 2021 to introduce quotas were quashed by the court due to non-compliance with these criteria.

(With inputs from agencies.)