Full Breakdown
Supreme Court Dismisses Andhra Pradesh’s Attempt to Restore 34% BC Reservation in Local Bodies
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event
On October 9, 2026, the Supreme Court dismissed the Andhra Pradesh government’s appeal against a High Court order that struck down two government orders providing 34 percent reservation for Backward Classes (BCs) in local-body elections. The Court upheld the October 1 verdict, finding that the state had not produced the empirical data required to justify breaching the 50 percent reservation ceiling prescribed by earlier Supreme Court rulings.
Background & Context
In 2020, the Andhra Pradesh High Court invalidated a previous decision to grant 34 percent BC reservation because the combined quota for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and BCs would rise to 59.85 percent, exceeding the constitutional ceiling of 50 percent. The state later argued that a fresh statewide survey showed the BC population at 50.42 percent (rural 48.84 percent, urban 54.35 percent) and that the enhanced quota was based on a range of material, not merely population figures.
The Supreme Court’s 2021 ruling in *Vikas Kishanrao Gawali v. State of Maharashtra* requires a contemporaneous, rigorous empirical inquiry into the nature and extent of backwardness before reservation can be expanded in local bodies. The Andhra Pradesh government sought to distinguish its 2026 exercise from the earlier framework, but the Court found the “unified family survey” insufficient.
Data & Statistics
Official Statements & Responses
- Mukul Rohatgi, senior advocate for the state, contended that demographic data and other material supported the 34 percent quota, but the bench remained unconvinced.
- Ch Venugopala Krishna and Dharmana Prasada Rao of the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) said the verdict “exposed” Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu’s failure to secure the promised quota and demanded that the government complete the statutory process and hold elections with the 34 percent reservation.
- Kolanukonda Sivaji, vice-president of the Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee, urged Naidu to pressurise the Union government to include a separate OBC column in the census as compensation for the missed quota.
Criticism & Opposition
- They rejected the party’s proposal to compensate BCs through ticket allocation, insisting that statutory reservations and political tickets are fundamentally different.
- The Congress party linked the state’s inability to implement the quota to the central government’s failure to honour a parliamentary commitment to add an OBC column to the population census, calling it a betrayal of BC communities.
Verbatim Quotes
- “Though the Supreme Court has cancelled the (BC) reservations GO (govt order), we will do justice to BCs from the party (TDP) standpoint. Party-wise, we will give 34 percent seats to BCs,” — Naidu. According
What’s Next
The Supreme Court’s dismissal leaves the 34 percent BC reservation orders cancelled. The High Court indicated that the state could revisit the proposal after undertaking the rigorous empirical exercise mandated by the Supreme Court. Meanwhile, YSRCP has sought an all-party meeting with the State Election Commission (letter dated October 7) to address electoral concerns ahead of the upcoming local-body polls.