SC Rejects Andhra Govt Plea Against 34% BC Quota In Local Body Polls

October 9, 2026

New Delhi: In a setback for the Andhra Pradesh government, the Supreme Court on Friday dismissed its petition challenging the Andhra Pradesh High Court’s decision striking down the 34 percent reservation for Backward Classes (BCs) in local body elections.

A bench comprising Justices Dipankar Datta and Sheel Nagu questioned the legal validity of the data used by the state government to justify the increased BC reservation. In particular, the bench questioned the findings of the Unified Family Survey.

Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, representing the Andhra Pradesh government, argued that the High Court had no reason to dismiss the survey data as unreliable. However, the Justice Datta-led bench asked the state government to explain where the High Court erred in holding that survey data cannot be used as a basis for determining reservations.

The Supreme Court remarked, “Show us that these figures can be considered. This is the Unified Family Survey—under which law is it being conducted?” The Supreme Court then dismissed the petition, questioning the legal basis for relying on the survey data to justify the increased reservation.

On October 1, the Andhra Pradesh High Court quashed two government orders granting 34 percent reservation to the BC category in local body elections. The High Court held that this reservation violated the 50 percent limit on total reservation.

The High Court had stated that, as per Supreme Court guidelines, the total reservation for all categories in local bodies should not exceed 50 percent.

This decision was considered a blow to the Chandrababu Naidu-led coalition government, as increasing the BC reservation in local bodies from 20 percent to 34 percent was one of the government’s key promises for the 2024 assembly elections.

Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, while announcing the increased reservation on August 18, had said that the BC category would be given 34 percent reservation in rural local bodies and 33.33 percent reservation in urban local bodies.

Following the High Court’s decision, Chief Minister Naidu directed officials to immediately file an appeal in the Supreme Court.

The High Court also directed the state government and the State Election Commission to initiate the process for local body elections within six weeks. The court dismissed petitions demanding that elections be held only after the completion of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in the state.