Bhubaneswar, December 25: The ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Saturday decided to field at least 40 per cent other backward class (OBC) candidates in the upcoming Panchayat and Urban elections in the State.
A resolution to this effect was passed in the party’s executive committee meeting headed by party chief and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. The political resolution was moved by BJD Organisational secretary Pranab Prakash Das.
Reservation of seats for the OBC community has been removed from the Panchayat and Urban polls following Supreme Court’s direction.
“As elections for three-tier Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) and Urban Local Bodies (ULB) is going to be held in the State in near future, the BJD has taken this historic decision to nominate 40 per cent OBC candidates to fight in the upcoming rural and urban elections,” said Das.
Citing two recent Supreme Court (SC) orders issued on December 6 and 17, the Orissa High Court on December 22 said, “There can be no reservation yet provided for BCCs (backward class citizens) in the post of sarpanches in Odisha in the elections to be held. It is inevitable, therefore, for the government of Odisha to re-work the draft notification for holding of elections to the panchayats, panchayat samitis and Zilla Parishads in 2022.”
Following the direction, the State Government, meanwhile, also published a draft reservation list for the post of chairperson of Zilla Parishads omitting reservation for OBC people.
The SC had stayed other backward class (OBC) reservations in local bodies elections in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh stating that “triple test” have to be followed for OBC quota – set up a dedicated commission to conduct rigorous empirical inquiry into the nature and implications of the backwardness, specify proportion of reservation required to be provisioned local body-wise in light of recommendations of the commission and ensure reservation shall not exceed aggregate of 50% of the total seats reserved in favour of SCs/STs/OBCs taken together.
