Srinagar, Feb 04: A government-appointed commission is set to recommend reservations for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in local bodies—including panchayats, municipalities, Block Development Councils (BDCs), and District Development Councils (DDCs)—based on their population proportion. However, the exact percentage for OBC reservation has yet to be finalised.
The commission, chaired by retired Justice Janak Raj Kotwal, with senior retired IAS officer R.K. Bhagat and Professor Mohinder Singh Barwal as members, was initially scheduled to complete its work by December 31, 2024. However, sources indicate that the tenure might be extended to allow more time for finalizing the recommendations.
Currently, the commission is working to ensure that OBC reservations are implemented in both urban and rural areas before the next panchayat elections. According to sources, the commission may recommend that OBC reservations follow a similar structure to those for Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST).
In urban local bodies, the total reservation for SC, ST, OBC, and women is expected not to exceed 50%. This means that half of the seats in panchayats, municipalities, BDCs, and DDCs will remain open for general candidates. In cases where the SC and ST quotas total 50%, OBCs may not receive additional reservations due to constitutional limits on the total reservation percentage.
The commission has also taken into account the existing 33% reservation for women, which includes SC and ST women. The final recommendations are expected to ensure that OBCs receive adequate representation based on their population share in local bodies.
In February 2024, the OBC Commission approved an 8% reservation for OBCs in government jobs and educational institutions, a significant increase from the previous 4% reserved for Other Social Castes (OSC). This move marked the first-time introduction of OBC reservations in Jammu and Kashmir.
The commission is working to finalise its report before the next round of local body elections, after which the government will review and act on the recommendations.
The OBC Commission was established by the UT government on June 11, 2023, to determine the reservation percentage for OBCs in local bodies. The Chairman and Members were appointed on July 31, 2023. In recent months, the Commission has visited various areas and engaged with local communities to gather feedback on the OBC population.
The introduction of OBC reservations in Jammu and Kashmir’s local bodies has delayed elections that were initially scheduled for October-November 2023. As a result, panchayats, municipalities, and BDCs have been without elected representatives for over a year. The term of the municipalities ended in late 2023, and the Panchayats’ tenure concluded on January 9, 2024. Since the BDCs’ term was tied to that of the Panchayats, they too ceased to exist when the Panchayats’ term ended.
