UP Urban Local Body Polls: Government Forms Five Member Panel Over OBC Quota

The Uttar Pradesh government has moved to constitute a five member panel to determine the 'political' backwardness of OBCs, in order to fulfill the criteria for providing reservations in local body polls.

This step follows the Tuesday (27 December) judgment of the Allahabad High Court, which quashed an earlier draft notification by the state election commission reserving 27 per cent of 762 Urban Local Bodies seats for OBCs in upcoming elections.

The Court said that the government cannot provide reservations for OBCs, since it doesn't fulfill the "Triple Test" formula laid down by the Supreme Court.

The 'Triple Test' formula requires the state to conduct an empirical inquiry into the nature of "political backwardness" of communities, before providing them reservations, a condition not fulfilled by the state government.

The Court further directed the government to conduct the elections by 31 January without reservations.

Notably, the Constitution only provides for reservations for SC/ST and women in panchayati raj institutions and municipal bodies, while no such provision for OBCs exists.

CM Yogi Adityanath, following the uproar over the Court's verdict, clarified on Twitter that no elections would be conducted without reservations for OBCs.

"We will take the issue to the Supreme Court if necessary," he tweeted.

The backward classes commission, headed by retired high court judge Justice Ram Avatar Singh, will present its report within six months. All the members of the commission belong to backward classes.

The already delayed polls are set to be pushed back further now.