Supreme Court Directs Maharashtra's Election Panel To Notify Local Body Polls In 2 Weeks

The court's directive came days after the Maharashtra State Election Commission (SEC) stayed elections to 92 municipal councils and four nagar panchayats.

Polling officials carry Electronic Voting Machines. (Representative Image/ Getty)

The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed the Election Commission and all concerned state authorities of Maharashtra to ensure the election process with respect to local bodies is immediately commenced and taken forward based on direction in order dated on May 4. According to reports, the top court has asked Maharashtra State commission to notify the election within 2 weeks.

"We want election to be conducted. It cannot be deferred like this indefinitely," the apex court said in its order. 

The court's directive came days after the Maharashtra State Election Commission (SEC) stayed elections to 92 municipal councils and four nagar panchayats on the backdrop of this week's hearing on OBC reservations before the Supreme Court.

The Maharashtra OBC commission had submitted its report on July 12 to the top court.

SEC had earlier announced that elections to these local government bodies will take place on August 18 without OBC reservation. Even Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has said that his government supports the view that local body polls in the state should be held only after the decision of the Supreme Court on the issue of OBC reservation.

Cutting across political line, all parties in Maharashtra, including Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Uddhav Thacakeray-led Shiv Sena faction, are in favour of reservation to OBCs. The parties have also demanded deferring the polls till the issue is resolved.

"We (too) want local body polls to happen after the Supreme Court's decision on the OBC reservations issue. We wish the OBC community should get justice," Shinde said in his first speech in Delhi after taking over the CM office.

Earlier in March, the Supreme Court had rejected the interim report of the State Backward Class Commission. After the top court's ruling, the then Maha Vikas Aghadi government passed a cabinet resolution that election (to the local bodies) should not be held without resolving the OBC issue.