No plan to hike OBC quota in civic polls: Govt

NEW DELHI: The government on Wednesday told Rajya Sabha that there is no proposal to increase reservation for Other Backward Castes (OBCs) as per population in the local body elections. But the state government can take a call to increase the reservation.

In response to a query during question hour, minister of state for panchayati raj, Kapil Moreshwar Patil, said OBCs are provided one-third reservation under Article 243D of the Constitution. "However, 21 state governments have increased the reservation up to 50%. The member has sought to increase reservation for OBCs as per population in the local body polls. There is no proposal before us," he added.

In local bodies, there is a 50% reservation for women. Under this quota, there is a provision to accommodate OBCs, SCs and STs, the minister said. "On this subject, states should take a call at their level," he said. Patil said local body polls couldn't be held in Maharashtra due to the OBC quota issue. The Supreme Court has said that the reservation cannot be increased beyond 50% without empirical data.


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