The Gujarat government has appointed former Chief Justice of Orissa High Court KS Jhaveri, as a one-man committee to fix reservation for OBC communities in the elections to local bodies, amid criticism over its failure to appoint such a panel.
The State government late on Friday announced the formation of an independent commission to fix reservation for OBCs ahead of polls which are due in more than 5,000 village panchayats.
The State government had come under fire from Congress, the main opposition party, as well as other OBC groups after the State Election Commission (SEC) on July 2 issued an order directing district authorities to convert the 10% seats reserved for OBCs in the gram panchayat elections into ‘general’ seats.
The previous committee to fix OBC reservation had ceased to exist following the death of the panel’s lone member.
“There was a deliberate attempt by the State government to not appoint the new panel so that seats reserved for OBCs are automatically declared general seats,” said former Gujarat Congress chief Amit Chavda. He charged the “RSS-controlled BJP government” with harbouring an anti-OBC mindset.
“The Supreme Court had ordered that a commission or panel needed to be formed by the State government. Madhya Pradesh, which is also ruled by the BJP, appointed the commission four months back and fixed 27% reservation for OBCs in local body elections,” Mr Chavda said, asking why the State government in Gujarat took so long to appoint the panel.
He added OBCs comprise over 60% of the population in the State. “We will launch a Statewide agitation if the government fails to protect the interests of OBCs,” he warned.
In a press release, the State government claimed that in compliance with the SC guidelines, a new commission headed by Justice Jhaveri has been formed.
Within the BJP, former MLA and prominent OBC leader Alpesh Thakor went public with his criticism of the government, for “neglecting the interests of the OBCs”. “The government should have been more active in this regard,” he said, expressing displeasure over the State’s “lethargic attitude”.
Top officials are tight lipped regarding when the commission will submit its report and the schedule for the gram panchayat polls. Even SEC officials were not forthcoming with details.
Mukesh Bharwad, vice-president of OBC, ST, SC Unity Forum, a State-level body of backward communities, submitted a memorandum to the SEC demanding why the panel was not formed earlier and when the quotas of OBCs will be fixed.
