More trouble for Maharashtra government as ZP bypolls in October

The State Election Commission (SEC) has announced bypolls for six zilla parishads (district councils) — Palghar, Dhule, Nandurbar, Akola, Washim, and Nagpur — and 33 other panchayat samitis

Adding more trouble for the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, the State Election Commission (SEC) has announced bypolls for six zilla parishads (district councils) — Palghar, Dhule, Nandurbar, Akola, Washim, and Nagpur — and 33 other panchayat samitis on the seats vacated following the Supreme Court (SC) order against the political reservation for the Other Backward Classes (OBC) community. The polls will be held on October 5 and the counting will be held the next day.

Holding elections without reservation for OBCs may create unrest in the community, which might be politically damaging for the Maharashtra government. (HT)

With the decision, SEC has also paved the way for ‘mini-Assembly elections’ to be held early next year. More than 15 municipal corporations (including Mumbai, Navi Mumbai and Thane), 29 of 36 district councils and over 90 municipal councils will go for polls over the next one year. The election to local bodies in such a huge number is considered as the ‘mini assembly polls’.

All the political parties in the state have already opposed bypolls until the political reservation of the OBC community is reinstated. Holding elections without reservation for OBCs may create unrest in the community, which might be politically damaging for MVA government.

SEC’s announcement comes following SC’s decision on Saturday, in which it had directed the poll body to take a call on the local body elections at its level and added that the state government has no authority to decide when to hold local body elections. Earlier, it had also stated that the absence of the political quota to OBCs in local body elections cannot be the grounds for the postponement of the polls.

“Earlier, the bypolls [on the vacated seats] were declared on July 19, but following SC’s decision on July 6 and the state government’s request, it was decided to postpone them. However, on September 9, the Apex court clearly stated the state government’s notification (issued on August 9) imposing curbs owing to the prevailing Covid-19 pandemic cannot be applied to the bypolls and ordered us to take the decision on the polls at the earliest,” said UPS Madan, state election commissioner, in a statement released on Monday.

While scrapping OBC reservation in local bodies, the Apex court in March had asked the state government to collect empirical data of the community to decide quota. Thus, the community will not get reservation until empirical data is collected.

“The bypolls have been declared following SC’s decision. We will discuss it with the chief minister (Uddhav Thackeray) and will also call an all-party meeting. As it’s SC’s decision, I won’t be able to comment more on it. A potential third wave is likely to hit the state. We, however, still have 15-20 days to hold deliberations and see what can be done. If not, the bypolls will be held as per schedule. All parties have already agreed to field only OBC candidates for the bypolls,” said relief and rehabilitation minister Vijay Wadettiwar.

“We have formed the backward classes’ commission to collect empirical data. If the Centre would have given the caste-based data, we may not have been in this situation. We have also filed a petition in the Apex court, seeking the caste-based census data from them. The state government will promulgate an ordinance to bring amendment in the legislation to provide reservation to the OBC community, if required,” he said in response to the mini-Assembly polls to be held early next year.

In an all-party meeting held on September 3, it was decided that the state government will direct the Maharashtra State Commission for Backward Classes (MSCBC) to try and collect the empirical data necessary to restore reservation for the OBC community in the next few months. MVA government is also planning to bring an amendment in the legislation to provide reservation to the OBC within the 50% reservation cap mandated by the Apex court. It has filed a writ petition in SC, seeking Socio-Economic Caste Census, 2011, data from the Centre. The next hearing is going to be held on September 23.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has alleged that the Thackeray government did not take the issue seriously.

“The MVA government had three months but the issue was not taken seriously which led to this situation. SC has clearly said that the state has to collect empirical data, and caste-based census data has no role to play in it. However, BJP has already decided that if bypolls become imminent, then all the candidates on those seats will be from OBC community only,” said party spokesperson Keshav Upadhye.