In a significant ruling on Tuesday, the Supreme Court mandated that the Maharashtra State Election Commission conduct local body elections and conclude them within the next four months. The Court emphasized the constitutional obligation to uphold regular, timely elections at the grassroots level.
Justice Surya Kant and Justice N Kotiswar Singh, who presided over the case, highlighted the importance of adhering to democratic principles and ensuring that local body elections are held as required by the Constitution. “The constitutional mandate of grassroots democracy through periodical elections of the local bodies ought to be respected and ensured,” the Bench remarked.
The Court also directed that the election process be formally notified within four weeks, although it allowed the Election Commission the option to request an extension if necessary.
The ruling comes amid ongoing discussions about the reservation of seats for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in these elections. The Banthia Commission had previously recommended a 27% reservation for OBCs, but the Court decided that the OBC reservation system would follow the framework in place before 2022—prior to the Banthia Commission’s report.
This latest order comes after the Court’s August 2022 directive, which had previously called for a status quo on the elections, effectively halting the process and leaving local bodies under bureaucratic control.
