Mumbai: Uncertainty Looms Over Maharashtra Local Body Elections; Supreme Court Delays Due to Ongoing Legal Challenges

Mumbai, 14th November 2023: The fate of local body elections in Maharashtra hangs in the balance as the Supreme Court grapples with pending cases related to OBC reservation, membership increase, and demarcation. Consequently, from January 1, 2024, no municipal corporation in the state will have elected representatives, ushering in an era of Administrator Rule across all municipal corporations.

Elections for 26 Zilla Parishads, 289 Panchayat Samitis, and 257 Municipalities and Nagar Panchayats are also in limbo. The Supreme Court of India nullified OBC reservation in local bodies, leading to the postponement of elections. Subsequently, the formation of a dedicated Backward Classes Commission was mandated to collect scientific statistical information on OBCs for the restoration of the OBC reservation.

Although elections for 92 Municipalities and 4 Nagar Panchayats were announced by the State Election Commission, the receipt of the Banthia Backward Classes Commission’s report raised questions about holding elections without OBC reservation. This led to the further postponement of elections, and the matter is currently under the consideration of the Supreme Court.

Legal disputes over the Thackeray government’s decision to increase the number of members in Municipal Corporations and Zilla Parishads, changes made by the Shinde government, and the authority to form wards, whether belonging to the state government or the Election Commission, have also reached the Supreme Court, contributing to the election standstill.

The terms of major municipal corporations, including Mumbai, Pune, Thane, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Aurangabad, and Nagpur, expired in March-April of the previous year. With two newly created Municipal Corporations, Ichalkaranji and Jalna, elections for 25 Municipal Corporations have already lapsed, leaving governance in the hands of administrators. The remaining two Municipal Corporations, Ahmednagar and Dhule, are set to expire next month by the end of December. Consequently, starting from January 1, 2024, no municipal corporation in the state will have elected representatives, with administrators overseeing their governance.