Hyderabad: Telangana issued the notification for the first phase of Gram Panchayat elections on November 27, proceeding without the promised 42% Backward Class quota, largely in a bid to secure frozen Union government funds.

The decision to conduct the polls under the old reservation cap comes despite a fierce legal and political battle over increasing BC representation, which the Congress government had made a central plank of its agenda.

Officials received over 3,000 nominations for Sarpanch posts on day one, setting the stage for a three-phase exercise beginning December 11. However, the move has drawn sharp criticism from the Bharat Rashtra Samithi and Bharatiya Janata Party, who accuse the government of betraying the community by failing to legally secure the quota enhancement before the notification.

The ‘funding’ clause

Backward Classes welfare minister Ponnam Prabhakar defended the decision on Thursday, stating the government was forced to act to prevent the lapse of approximately Rs 3,000 crore in Union government grants.

“We were left with no option but to proceed with the elections,” Prabhakar said. “Development came to a halt. Central funds were withheld for two years due to the delay in conducting local body polls.”

Prabhakar insisted the Congress remains “firmly committed” to the 42% quota but blamed the legal deadlock on the opposition. He argued that the BRS and BJP had "shown their real intent" by blocking the quota through litigation and failing to support the necessary constitutional amendments at the Centre.

Legal deadlock

The controversy stems from the Telangana high court’s stay on Government Order (GO) Ms. No. 9 earlier this year. The GO sought to raise BC reservations to 42%, which, combined with Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes quotas, pushed the total reservation to 67%.

The court ruled that this violated the Supreme Court’s mandated 50% ceiling on total reservations. With the high court halting the process and the Governor withholding assent on related Bills, the government has reverted to the previous reservation formula to comply with the 50% cap and Supreme Court directions to hold elections.

The high court hearing on the executive order that raised the BC quota in local body elections is scheduled for December 3.

Political crossfire

The opposition has dismissed the government’s reasoning. The BRS has threatened state-wide protests, while BJP leaders have accused chief minister Revanth Reddy of staging a "drama" to cover up administrative incompetence.

BJP MP R. Krishnaiah termed the decision a "fight against humiliation," while BRS leader T. Harish Rao challenged the Chief Minister to fight for the legislation in Delhi rather than issuing legally unsound orders in Hyderabad.

Election schedule

Despite the political heat, the administrative machinery is moving swiftly. The first phase of polling is scheduled for December 11, followed by phases on December 14 and 17.

According to the State Election Commission, nominations close at 5 pm on November 29. the candidate list will be published on December 3 and phase one polling will begin December 11.

On Thursday, election observers and district collectors, including Nirmal Observer Ayesha Masrat Khanam, inspected nomination centres across the state. A total of 3,242 nominations for Sarpanch posts and 1,821 for ward member posts were filed on the opening day.

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