Telangana Gram Panchayat polls: Government suppresses GOMs 42, sets new reservation criteria
Telangana government issued guidelines for Gram Panchayat elections, ensuring SC, ST, and BC reservations remain within the Supreme Court-mandated 50% ceiling. GOM 46 supersedes the previous order, with elections expected in three phases before December 20, pending High Court directions.
Hyderabad: The State government is gearing up for the Gram Panchayat elections and has issued guidelines on reservations for SC, ST and BC communities, ensuring the quota does not exceed the 50 percent ceiling mandated by Supreme Court orders.
GOMs 46 was issued on Saturday after the Dedicated Commission submitted its report on reservations to the government on Thursday, though the report has not yet been made public.
The latest order has now suppressed GOMs 42, issued on September 26 this year, which proposed 42 percent reservations for BCs in the Panchayat elections and is currently under challenge in the High Court.
There are 545 mandals, 12,760 villages and 1,13,534 wards in the State, with Ward Member and Sarpanch elections to be held in direct mode. Reservations will first be identified for STs, followed by SCs, BCs and women. Ward Member reservations for SC, ST and BC communities will be determined based on the Socio, Economic, Education, Employment, Political and Caste Survey (SEEPC) 2024, while Sarpanch reservations will be based on the 2011 census for SC and ST categories and SEEPC 2024 for BCs.
As the State government has amended the Telangana Panchayat Raj Act 2018, reservation of seats and offices will be done on a rotation basis beginning from the ordinary elections held under the Act. The ensuing elections will be treated as the second ordinary elections.
However, elections to Gram Panchayats notified after the 2019 polls will be treated as first ordinary elections and earlier reservations implemented in such panchayats will not be considered.
A hearing on the reservation issue in the local body elections is scheduled in the High Court on November 24. Depending on the court’s direction, a report on reservations will be finalised and placed before the State Cabinet on November 25 for approval.
The State Election Commission held a meeting with district Collectors and senior officials earlier this week. There are indications that the election schedule may be issued on November 25 or 26, with polling likely to be conducted in three phases and completed before December 20.
