Telangana's Quota Issue In Supreme Court, State Plans Strategy Session

Telangana Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka, Congress's state unit chief Mahesh Kumar Goud, and minister Ponnam Prabhakar are expected to travel to New Delhi soon to meet the legal counsel representing the state in Supreme Court, which is hearing a petition challenging the hike in Backward Classes quota.

The visit is aimed at finalising the strategy for the state's legal battle over the implementation of 42 per cent reservation for Backward Classes in the upcoming local body elections.

Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, his cabinet, the PCC chief, and AICC In-charge Meenakshi Natarajan have said they want to implement the 42 per cent quota, a decision which has delayed the local body polls.

The government has already issued an order to formally implement the 42 per cent reservation, and the poll body has announced the schedule for the local body elections.

The Telangana State Election Commission has announced the detailed schedule for the Rural Local Bodies polls. The voting will be conducted in five phases between October 23 and November 8, 2025.

An affidavit, however, has been filed in the Supreme Court challenging the increased quota. To effectively counter this challenge, the state government is preparing to present a strong argument. 

The team led by the Deputy Chief Minister will seek legal advice from the top lawyers in Delhi to ensure the government's position on achieving the reservation for the BC community is placed properly before the top court.

A prolonged legal and political battle is being fought in Telangana over reservation for Backward Classes in Panchayat Raj and Urban Local Body elections.

Historically, BC reservation in local body polls was capped at 50 per cent following court-mandated limits, which typically require the total reservation for SCs, STs, and BCs not to exceed 50 per cent. 

The state's Congress government is committed to implementing a higher quota of 42 per cent specifically for Backward Classes.

By issuing the election order, the government formalised its intent for the 42 per cent quota, prompting the State Election Commission to announce the election schedule.

The Supreme Court has previously intervened in issues linked to reservation, emphasising the 50 per cent ceiling is maintained. The affidavit filed in the Supreme Court challenges the Telangana government's 42 per cent BC quota, arguing that it violates the overall 50 per cent reservation limit.