Supreme Court Refuses To Entertain Plea Against Telangana Govt Raising Backward Classes Quota In Local Bodies To 42%; Allows To Move HC

The Supreme Court on Monday refused to entertain a petition challenging the Telangana government's order raising the quota for Backward Classes in municipalities and panchayats to 42%, which pushed the total reservations in local bodies to 67%.A bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta allowed agriculturist Vanga Gopal Reddy to withdraw his plea seeking to declare G.O.Ms. No. 09 dated September 26, 2025, as unconstitutional, illegal and void for violating Articles 14, 243D and 243T of the Constitution.The petition contended that the order violated the 50% ceiling on reservations laid down by the Court in various judgments. It submitted that together with the existing 15% reservation for Scheduled Castes and 10% for Scheduled Tribes, the aggregate reservation exceeded 67%.During the hearing, the Justice Nath questioned the petitioner's decision to invoke Article 32 and approaching the Supreme Court instead of the High Court.Counsel for the petitioner submitted that after the government issued the order on September 26, some petitioners approached the Telangana High Court on September 28, but the Court refused to grant a stay. The matter is now listed before the High Court on October 8, he said.Justice Mehta asked, “The High Court doesn't grant a stay that means you come here in (Article) 32? Is this the way to exercise writ jurisdiction?”When the bench expressed inclination to dismiss the petition, the counsel sought liberty to withdraw the plea. Thus, the Court ordered, “Counsel for the petitioner upon instructions states that he may be allowed to withdraw the petition under Article 32 of the Constitution of India leaving it open for the petitioner to approach the jurisdictional High Court for appropriate reliefs. The petition is accordingly dismissed as withdrawn with liberty as prayed.”The plea, filed through Advocate Somiran Sharma, also sought directions for conducting elections to panchayats and other local bodies in accordance with Section 285A of the Telangana Panchayat Raj Act, 2018, and in line with the Supreme Court's judgments.The plea argued that the government order breached the 50% ceiling on reservations settled by Constitution Bench rulings, including Indra Sawhney v. Union of India (1992). It further submitted that Section 285A of the Telangana Panchayat Raj Act expressly barred exceeding the 50% cap, making the order ultra vires.The petition contended that the State cannot rely on Articles 243D(6) and 243T(6) to justify exceeding the ceiling recognised in Krishna Murthy v. Union of India (2010) and Vikas Kishanrao Gawali v. State of Maharashtra (2021).It further alleged that the order relied on a one-man commission report which was neither in the public domain nor debated in the legislature, contrary to the requirement laid down in K. Krishna Murthy.The plea pointed out that similar attempts by Maharashtra, Bihar, and Rajasthan to cross the 50% limit had been struck down by courts, reaffirming the ceiling as binding under Article 141. It claimed that the Telangana order violated fundamental rights under Articles 14, 243D and 243T of the Constitution and was arbitrary, unreasonable, and contrary to the rule of law.Case no. – W.P.(C) No. 945/2025Case Title – Vanga Gopal Reddy v. State of TelanganaClick Here To Read/Download Order

Supreme Court Refuses To Entertain Plea Against Telangana Govt Raising Backward Classes Quota In Local Bodies To 42%; Allows To Move HC

Amisha Shrivastava

Tags