Report of the Panel crucial for Panchayat and ULB elections
*Determines percentage of reservation for OBCs in Local Body elections
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Dec 27: The OBC Commission tasked with establishing the reservation percentage for OBCs in Local Bodies is approaching the end of its extended tenure, with just four days remaining to meet the December 31, 2024 deadline. The political parties are closely monitoring whether the Commission will deliver its report in time, as the conduct of Panchayat and Municipal elections is contingent on its findings.
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Justice (Retired) Janak Raj Kotwal, the Chairman of the Commission, informed the Excelsior that the team is diligently working on the report.
“We are currently in the office and engaged with the report. There are still two working days left. We will see how it unfolds,” Kotwal stated.
The Commission, led by Kotwal, includes Raj Kumar Bhagat, a retired IAS officer, and Prof Mohinder Singh Bhadwal, the former Dean of SKUAS-Jammu. The Panel has traveled to various regions in recent months to gather insights from the public and their representatives regarding the OBC population.
However, sources indicate that the Commission faces significant challenges due to the lack of census data and discrepancies in OBC population figures from various departments.
In sectors such as government employment and education, the Government has allocated an eight percent reservation for OBCs following the Parliamentary approval of a bill in February this year, which marked the inaugural provision of reservations for OBCs in Jammu and Kashmir. Previously, OBCs had no reservation, whereas Other Social Castes (OSCs) were entitled to a four percent reservation.
The Parliament also approved the bill providing reservations for OBCs across all three levels of Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs), which encompass District Development Councils (DDCs), Block Development Councils (BDCs), and both Panchayats and Urban Local Bodies (ULBs).
Consequently, the UT Government established the OBC Commission on June 11 this year to fix the reservation percentage for OBCs in Panchayats and Municipalities, with the Chairman and Members appointed on July 31.
The Commission’s report must be submitted before commencing the process for conducting Panchayat and Municipal elections. Currently, women are entitled to 33 percent reservations in both Urban and Rural Local Bodies, while SCs and STs benefit from reservations based on their population.
“Once the Commission finalizes and submits its report, the Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Department will initiate the process of reserving Wards for women, SCs, STs, and OBCs in Panchayats, which may be followed by delimitation if necessary,” officials noted.
Due to the introduction of reservations for OBCs for the first time in these bodies in Jammu and Kashmir, elections for Panchayats and Municipalities, scheduled for October-November of the previous year, have been postponed.
Municipalities, Panchayats, and BDCs have been unrepresented by elected members for over a year. The terms for Municipalities expired in October-November of last year, while Panchayats concluded their tenure on January 9 this year. Since the terms of BDCs were aligned with those of Panchayats, they similarly dissolved upon the completion of the Panchayat’s five-year tenure.
In contrast, District Development Councils, which held elections for the first time in Jammu and Kashmir in December 2020, will maintain their terms through January 2026.
