UP cabinet accepts report on OBC reservation in urban body polls

The Uttar Pradesh cabinet on Friday accepted the report of a five-member commission set up by it to look into the issue of reservation to Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in urban local body elections, and said it would be presented before the Supreme Court where the matter is sub-judice.

The report was submitted to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath Thursday evening.

Addressing the media after the cabinet meeting, minister A K Sharma said, "The report of the commission was submitted within three months. It has been accepted by the cabinet. It will be presented before the Supreme Court where the matter is sub-judice."

The minister, however, declined to share the contents of the report.

The panel was constituted after the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court had in December end last year quashed the state government's draft notification on urban local body elections and ordered it to hold the polls without reservation for OBCs.

The court had stated that the state government failed to fulfil the "triple test" formality for OBC reservation in local body polls laid down by the Supreme Court.

The "triple test" formula requires setting up of a commission to hold a "rigorous empirical inquiry" into the nature of "backwardness" in the context of local bodies, specifying the proportion of reservation based on the commission's recommendations, and not exceeding the overall 50 per cent quota limit.

Following the high court verdict, Adityanath had asserted that elections to the state's urban local bodies would not be held without reservation for OBCs and had set up the commission.

The state government also moved the Supreme Court against the Allahabad High Court's order.

"The next hearing on the case in the Supreme Court is scheduled on April 11. We will submit the report in the Supreme Court within a few days," said Sharma.

The panel was led by Justice (Retd) Ram Avtar Singh and had retired IAS officers Chaub Singh Verma and Mahendra Kumar and former legal advisors to the state Santosh Kumar Viskarma and Brajesh Kumar Soni as members.

The opposition Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) targeted the government following the high court verdict and alleged it was ignoring the interests of OBCs.

Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya said in a tweet, "The government is determined to ensure 27 per cent reservation to OBCs in local body elections. The cabinet accepted the timely report of the commission.... BJP is dedicated to providing rights to backward classes. SP, BSP, Congress are against the backward classes."