Telangana High Court order says it has not stayed the local body elections, but only the GOs on enhanced reservations

Sat Oct 11 04:20:33 UTC 2025: **Summary:**

The Telangana High Court has ruled that the State Election Commission can proceed with local body elections, but under the old reservation pattern. The court stayed government orders that sought to implement a 42% reservation for Backward Classes (BCs) because this would exceed the Supreme Court-mandated 50% reservation limit. The court clarified that the election process itself was not stayed, only the implementation of the increased reservation policy. The court observed that the government failed to adhere to the 50% limit laid down in the Vikas Kishan Rao Gawali case before issuing GOs 9, 41, and 42.

**News Article:**

**Telangana Local Body Elections Greenlit, But BC Quota Overhaul Blocked by High Court**

**Hyderabad, October 11, 2025** – The Telangana High Court has given the green light for the State Election Commission to proceed with long-delayed local body elections, but with a significant caveat: the polls must be conducted under the existing reservation structure, effectively halting the state government’s attempt to increase reservations for Backward Classes (BCs) to 42%.

A division bench, led by Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh, stayed Government Orders (GOs) 9, 41, and 42, which aimed to implement the increased BC quota and outlined the election schedule. The court ruled that the proposed 42% BC reservation would push the total reservation beyond the 50% limit mandated by the Supreme Court.

While the court stressed that the Election Commission’s authority remains intact and the election process itself is not stayed, the implementation of the increased reservation policy will remain suspended until the issue is fully adjudicated. This means the Election Commission can now designate proportional seats as open category and proceed with the election process.

The ruling stems from a challenge to the government’s claim that it had satisfied the “triple test” required to justify exceeding the 50% reservation cap, citing a special commission’s study of BC socio-economic conditions. The court disagreed, stating that Telangana failed to establish exceptions to the rule. The court observed that before the government issued GO 9, the total reservation stood at 50%, comprising 15% for SCs, 10% for STs, and 25% for BCs within the constitutional limit prescribed by the Supreme Court. The new 42% reservation for BCs would have raised the overall quota to 67%, exceeding the ceiling.

Read More