HC Dismisses Petitions Challenging BC Reservations

In a relief to the State government, the Telangana High Court today dismissed petitions challenging the government's proposed reservations for Backward Classes (BCs).

Two petitions were filed against the government order allocating 42% reservations to BCs in the local body elections. One of them, filed as a Public Interest Litigation (PIL), argued that granting 42% reservation to BCs was inappropriate.

The petitioners had sought directions to ensure that the total reservations did not exceed 50%, claiming that allotting 42% to BCs would surpass this limit and cause injustice to other communities in the local bodies. They cited the Supreme Court verdicts and provisions of the Panchayat Raj Act to support their claim.

However, the High Court expressed displeasure with the petitioners and questioned the basis of filing a PIL solely on newspaper reports, and stated that news articles could not be relied upon as evidence under Supreme Court rules. It rejected the petitions, allowing the government to proceed with the reservations.