The report on OBC reservation in 3 urban local bodies of Uttarakhand has been prepared; the path to elections will be cleared once the reservation is finalized

The picture regarding OBC reservation in the wards of three municipal bodies in the backward state has been clarified for the upcoming local body elections. The single-member dedicated commission constituted to determine OBC reservation has completed the public hearing process after conducting a survey.

The commission studied the political participation and social status of the OBC community in all three municipal bodies. The commission will now submit its report to the state government. In this report, the commission will recommend the total percentage of OBC reservation to be provided ward-wise in the three bodies. Once the OBC reservation is finalized, the path will be cleared for elections in these three municipal bodies.

Local body elections could not be held in Garhi Negi Nagar Panchayat in Udham Singh Nagar district, Pati Nagar Panchayat in Champawat district, and Narendra Nagar Municipal Council in Tehri district. The main reason for this was the non-completion of necessary processes related to delimitation and voter lists in these bodies.

In bodies like Garhi Negi and Narendra Nagar, the final delimitation of wards could not be completed, due to which these constituencies could not be notified. There were also delays in the voter list and other formalities.

Because of this, elections in these bodies remained postponed, while elections in most other municipal bodies in the state were completed in January 2025. Following a Supreme Court directive, the state government had sought a report from the dedicated commission regarding OBC reservation in the wards of these three bodies. The commission has prepared the report after studying the bodies and conducting public hearings. The public hearing process has been completed. After the state government receives the commission’s report, the election process in these three bodies is likely to move forward.

OBC Reservation Invalid Without Commission’s Report

In a judgment related to a case in Maharashtra, the Supreme Court had stated that OBC reservation in municipal bodies can only be provided if the state government constitutes a commission to study the actual political participation of OBCs in the bodies. OBC reservation provided without the commission’s report will be considered unconstitutional. Following this, the state government constituted the commission and proceeded with the process of determining OBC reservation based on its recommendations.