Maharashtra parties seek stay on local polls

State Govt. to file review plea in apex court on election embargo in OBC seats

A day after the Maharashtra State Election Commission stayed polls on seats reserved for the OBCs in the local body election, parties have demanded to stay the entire poll process to avoid any injustice to the OBCs.

The State Government will also be filing a review petition in the apex court terming the order as contradictory, it was announced.

“State Government’s Ordinance was based on the law currently being implemented across nine States in the country where 27% reservation for OBCs is being extended under the limit of 50%. The court order does not mention anything about it. We have decided that we will approach the apex court with a review petition as the order is contradictory,” said State Minister Nawab Malik, after a Cabinet meeting.

“Our law is valid. We will ask the court to proceed with the election on OBC reserved seats where poll process has already begun and if not, then the entire poll process should be stayed,” he said.

Earlier, a Bharatiya Janata Party delegation held a meeting with State Election Commissioner U.P.S. Madan demanding that the entire poll process should be stayed.

Polling on Dec.21

A total of 106 municipal panchayats, Bhandara and Gondiya zilla parishad and 15 panchayat samitis under these ZP are going for polls on December 21. In addition, bypolls for four municipal corporation seats and 7,130 vacants posts in gram panchayats are also going for polls.

“Stay on 27% seats would mean citizens on those wards are kept away from their right to franchiseenshrined in the Constitution. There is no clarity on when the OBC reservation will be restored and therefore it is not advisable to keep these seats vacant for unspecified time period. The State election commission’s decision to stay polls on only OBC seats is creating an imbalance,” said the delegation’s letter to Mr Madan.

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