Supreme Court Dismisses AP Govt’s Plea Against HC Order Striking Down 34% Backward Class Quota in Local Polls

A bench of Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Sheel Nagu said the Andhra Pradesh High Court's judgment rightly found lack of the empirical data required to justify reservation beyond the 50 per cent ceiling.

Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for the state government, submitted that the decision was backed by demographic and empirical material and there is no reason why the High Court rejected the data as unreliable.

Justice Datta remarked that the High Court did not err in recording that the data on which the state relied is not relevant.

The High Court on October 1 had struck down the two government orders, observing that the quota was against Supreme Court guidelines that total reservation should not exceed 50 per cent.

The High Court had directed the state government and the State Election Commission to begin the election process within six weeks.

On August 18, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu had announced the 34 per cent quota for backward classes in local body polls.

"We have taken this decision as part of the coalition government's political principle and NDA's promise. We promised to give reservations to backward classes in nominated posts during the polls and we have lived up to it," Naidu had said.

The Andhra Pradesh government had challenged the high court's judgement while contending that 34 per cent reservation was based on a statewide survey, community validation through gram and ward sabhas, local-body-wise data and the work of an independent dedicated commission.