Telangana Statewide Bandh: Government and Opposition Unite Over Backward Classes Reservation Issue

The statewide bandh may disrupt public transportation and market operations. (Representational)

Hyderabad:

The Telangana government has announced its participation in Saturday's statewide bandh protesting judicial intervention regarding backward classes reservation.

Opposition parties including the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are also supporting this shutdown, which could significantly affect public transport services and market functioning.

This bandh comes as the state election commission (SEC) faces a two-week deadline from the Telangana High Court to submit a report on conducting local body elections under the previous reservation structure.

The high court has mandated the SEC to provide a compliance report on its earlier directive. This order requires the SEC to hold local body elections, including those for Zilla Parishad Territorial Constituencies and Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituencies, following the existing reservation pattern rather than the enhanced quota proposed by the state government.

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On October 9, the high court imposed an interim stay on Government Order No. 9 that aimed to increase Backward Classes reservation in local bodies from 25% to 42%.

The court stayed this order because the proposed 42% backward classes quota, combined with existing SC and ST reservations, would elevate total reservations to 67%, exceeding the Supreme Court's mandated 50% constitutional ceiling in general areas.

The court also highlighted the government's failure to fully comply with the Supreme Court-mandated 'triple test' for determining Other Backward Classes (OBC) reservation quotas.

On Thursday, the Supreme Court delivered a significant setback to the state government by declining to interfere with the high court's interim stay, firmly insisting that elections must proceed based on existing quotas.

Congress leaders have stated that the party remains committed to the enhanced 42% reservation. By joining the shutdown, the state government aims to deflect blame while reassuring the BC community of its policy commitment.

Facing dual setbacks from both the high court and Supreme Court, the government has scheduled a crucial Cabinet meeting for October 23.

This meeting will primarily focus on determining future actions regarding the 42% backward classes reservation. Ministers will explore legal options, including potentially appealing the Supreme Court's decision or developing new strategies based on the judicial insistence that the 50% reservation cap cannot be exceeded.

With the SEC ordered to report on compliance and political tensions heightened by the bandh, next week's Cabinet decision will be crucial in determining both the fate of the enhanced reservation policy and the schedule for the long-delayed local body elections.