- Government issues GO 46 to guide reservation process for BC SC ST and women
- Political parties prepare for Gram Panchayat elections as key rules set
The reservation process for the Gram Panchayat elections in Telangana has reached its final stage after months of delay. Hyderabad officials confirmed that the procedures gained clarity after the state government issued GO No. 46 to guide the reservation model for BC, SC, ST and women categories. The government decided to follow the old reservation system after the court rejected its plan to conduct elections with 42 percent BC reservation. Officials said they acted quickly to complete the work as per the new guidelines.
District collectors, RDOs and MPDOs completed most of the reservation finalisation on Saturday. Some pending cases in a few districts will be settled soon. Officials also said they would use the lottery method only if needed and only in the presence of all political parties. They are working to finish the reservation process by Sunday night so that district wise gazettes can be issued without delay. The allocations will follow the Panchayat Raj Act of 2018.
Meanwhile, all major political parties have started preparing for the Gram Panchayat elections. The Congress, BRS and BJP are planning their strategies while they study the reservation details. GO No. 46 explains the reservation allocation clearly for ST, SC, BC and women based on the recommendations of the Dedicated Commission formed under Supreme Court orders. The court said total reservations for ST, SC and BC should not cross 50 percent.
The government will consider the 2011 Census for ST and SC reservations for the Sarpanch seats. However, BC reservations will come from the 2024 caste census. For ward members, the 2024 caste census will decide reservations for STs, SCs and BCs. Officials said this process will make the Gram Panchayat reservations more transparent and legal. Several sections of the Panchayat Raj Act 2018 have been amended to support these procedures.
In Scheduled Areas, the rules will follow constitutional provisions that require at least half of all seats to be reserved for STs. All Sarpanch posts in these areas must also be reserved for STs. Gram Panchayats with 100 percent ST population will have all wards and Sarpanch posts reserved for that category. After allocating seats for STs, officials will assign seats to SCs and then BCs based on population ratios. The remaining seats will fall under the unreserved category. Half of the seats in every category will be set aside for women.
Officials said women’s reservations from the previous elections may stay in the same category where possible. They will use a descending allocation method and apply the lottery system only for remaining seats. They noted that combined reservations for STs, SCs and BCs in Gram Panchayat elections cannot cross 50 percent.
Under Section 9 of the Telangana Panchayat Raj Act 2018, MPDOs will decide ward reservations. Under Section 17, RDOs will finalise Sarpanch reservations. After identifying Gram Panchayats based on population ratios, they will complete allocations in rotation and exclude the seats reserved in the 2019 elections if those elections were not held.
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