CHENNAI: After lengthy arguments on the issue of provision of reservations in local bodies for Backward Classes (BCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) in Puducherry, the Madras High Court adjourned a batch of petitions challenging the poll notification to Wednesday.
The petitions, including the one filed by Puducherry DMK Secretary R Siva, came up for hearing before the first bench of Acting Chief Justice (ACJ) Munishwar Nath Bhandari and Justice PD Audikesavalu on Tuesday.
While listening to the arguments, the ACJ observed that there cannot be a different yardstick for determining the backwardness of different categories of people in the society for providing them reservation in local bodies. ACJ suggested a way to resolve the current issue of providing reservations to the backward classes was by setting up a commission to determine the backwardness.
The (UT) government has to constitute a commission and determine criteria for the political backwardness of OBCs. Based on the criteria, the OBCs must be identified local body-wise and the data must be collected. This cannot be done overnight, he said, adding that without clearing all these things, the election cannot be held.
Earlier, senior counsel Vijay Narayan, appearing for the UT government, said that as reservations for SC/STs were mandatory, an G.O. was issued providing reservations to BCs. He also said the economic and social backwardness was taken into account for SC/STs but political backwardness was the criteria for determining reservation for BCs. Hearing this, the ACJ questioned how different criteria could be followed. Also, there could not be any politically-backward person, he added.
Referring to the STs, the counsel for the Puducherry State Election Commission said data was not available as the 2021 census could not be held due to the prevailing pandemic situation. However, Vijay Narayan noted that rough estimates showed the population of STs to be 2,000 in Puducherry.