Chief Minister Revanth Reddy has directed the drafting of an action plan to increase reservations for BCs in local body elections. On Monday, a review meeting was held at the Secretariat under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, focusing on increasing BC reservations during panchayat elections. During the meeting, the Chief Minister asked officials to reveal details regarding the implementation of reservations in earlier panchayat elections and their potential increase in forthcoming elections. Officials briefed the Chief Minister on the methods followed in earlier panchayat elections and the preparations underway for upcoming ones. Given the approval for caste enumeration, the Chief Minister enquired how long it would take to proceed with the panchayat elections based on this data. Officials explained that while Karnataka conducted a caste enumeration in 2015 and Bihar in 2023, Andhra Pradesh is yet to disclose its details. They said that the Centre’s 2011 caste enumeration format included 53 columns and adding three more columns would take at least five and a half months to complete. The Chief Minister emphasised the need to prepare a swift action plan to conduct elections promptly, ensuring that Central funds for local bodies are not interrupted. A detailed discussion on increasing BC reservations took place during the meeting.
Former minister Jana Reddy elaborated on the procedures followed in United AP to the recent panchayat elections in Telangana, the cases filed in the Supreme Court regarding BC reservations in local body elections in various states, and their outcomes. Subsequently, the Chief Minister responded by advising the preparation of a chronological list of methods followed so far for implementing reservations in panchayat elections. He suggested consulting former Minister Jana Reddy, Panchayat Raj department experts and former senior officials to clear doubts and to discuss legal matters with the Advocate General. The Chief Minister also directed a study on the reservation practices in other states.
