The Karnataka High Court on Friday directed the state government to redo the list of wards reserved for women and Other Backward Classes in the Bengaluru civic body election, PTI reported.
The court has also ordered the government and the Karnataka Election Commission to hold elections to the civic body Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike before December 31.
Justice Hemant Chandangoudar gave the order on a batch of petitions challenging the reservation criteria for 243 wards under various categories, The Hindu reported.
The court found errors in the reservation list for women and OBC candidates.
On Friday, it asked the government to make a list of wards in descending order of women living within their limits. The court also directed the state government to provide all data necessary for preparing the reservation list to the Bhaktavatsala Commission within one month, PTI reported.
The government will have to fix reservations for OBCs after the Commission submits a report on the quota, the court said.
Additional Advocate General Dhyan Chinnappa submitted an affidavit prepared by the Urban Development department seeking 16 weeks to redo the reservation list, PTI reported. However, the court allowed eight weeks for the task.
The court also said that it will check for actions taken on November 30.
The Bengaluru civic body elections were supposed to take place in September 2020, PTI reported. However, the state government obtained a stay order on the polls.
In May, the Supreme Court had said that elections to all local bodies pending in the country should be conducted without any delay. Subsequently, the Karnataka Election Commission had approached the High Court saying that the state government was taking over its powers of ward delimitation and reservation.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!