Telangana Bandh Today Over Backward Classes Reservation Issue

The Telangana government announced that it would join the Saturday statewide bandh that protests the judicial intervention on backward classes reservation.

The statewide bandh is also being backed by the opposition parties- the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The shutdown could impact public transport and the functioning of markets.

The bandh comes as the state election commission (SEC) faces a two-week deadline by the Telangana High Court to report on proceeding with the local body elections under the old reservation structure.

The high court gave the SEC a deadline to provide a compliance report on the court's earlier directive. This order requires the SEC to conduct the local body elections, including polls for Zilla Parishad Territorial Constituencies and Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituencies, under the existing reservation pattern and not the enhanced quota proposed by the state government.

READ: Supreme Court Relief For Once-Arrested Telangana Women Journalists

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

The court stayed the order because the proposed 42% backward classes quota, when combined with existing reservations for SCs and STs, would raise the total reservation to 67%, a figure that violates the Supreme Court's mandated 50% constitutional ceiling in general areas.

The court also noted the government's failure to fully comply with the Supreme Court-mandated 'triple test' for determining the quantum of Other Backward Classes (OBC) reservations.

On Thursday, the Supreme Court delivered a major blow to the state government by refusing to interfere with the high court's interim stay, firmly reiterating that the elections must proceed based on existing quotas.

Congress leaders said the party is unwavering in its commitment to the enhanced 42% reservation. By joining the shutdown, the state government wants to divert any blame away from itself while reassuring the BC community of its policy commitment. 

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

The primary agenda of the meeting will be to deliberate on the future course of action regarding the 42% backward classes reservation. Ministers will discuss the legal options available, including whether to appeal the Supreme Court's decision or to re-strategize based on the judicial insistence that the 50% reservation cap cannot be breached.

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