Backward classes will not get reservation in local body elections of this state, High Court bans it

The Telangana High Court on Thursday (October 09, 2025) stayed the implementation of the state government order (GO) MS No. 9, which provided for 42 percent reservation for backward classes (OBCs) in the upcoming local body elections. In its interim order, the court suspended the operation of this GO till further orders.

The court directed the state government to file a counter affidavit within four weeks and allowed the petitioners to file their objections within two weeks thereafter. The next hearing of the case has been scheduled after six weeks.

Court raised questions on government order

This decision came after two days of debate in the High Court on the legality and proportionality of the OBC quota. The court questioned the validity of the government order and asked whether adequate deliberation was done in the data collection and analysis.

The court said in its observation, ‘After the data is published and the report is submitted by the Commission, should not the process of public publication, inviting objections and then addressing them be followed?’

67 percent reservation violates constitutional limits

Last month, the Telangana government had issued an order for 42 per cent OBC reservation for local body elections to be held in multiple phases in October and November. On September 27, the vacation bench heard a House motion petition and questioned the urgency of the order and the absence of the Governor’s assent to the bill. After this the case was listed for hearing on October 8.

The petitioners argued that increasing the OBC reservation from the existing 25 percent to 42 percent would take the total reservation in the state to 67 percent, which could be a violation of constitutional limits. The court has directed a thorough investigation into this matter and has sought a detailed reply from the government. This decision can have a significant impact on the process of local body elections.

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