Supreme Court asks Maharashtra to conduct overdue municipal and panchayat polls within 4 months

NAGPUR: he Supreme Court on Monday directed the Maharashtra State Election Commission (SEC) to notify elections to all pending local self-government bodies across the state within four weeks and complete the election process within four months. The court also ordered restoration of the OBC reservation in local bodies as it existed prior to the 2022 report that had altered the quota structure.
A bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and NK Singh passed the directions while hearing a batch of petitions seeking immediate conduct of municipal and panchayat elections that had been deferred for over two years. Observing that democratic functioning cannot be held hostage to procedural delays, the court said elections must now proceed without further postponement.
The bench clarified that the reservation for the Other Backward Classes must be implemented based on the model that existed before the 2022 State Backward Classes Commission report. That report, which followed the triple test norm laid down by the court earlier, had led to the withdrawal of OBC quota in some bodies and delay in polls, sparking statewide protests and litigation.
The court’s directive now clears the path for elections to nearly 2,000 urban and rural local bodies, including major municipal corporations like Mumbai, Pune, and Nagpur. The SEC is expected to start the notification process imminently, following which the entire electoral exercise must conclude within four months.
The ruling marks a decisive push from the apex court to restore elected local governance and ensure timely representation, particularly of OBC communities, across Maharashtra.