<p>Mumbai: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/india/maharashtra">Maharashtra </a>minister and senior BJP leader Chandrashekhar Bawankule has said a "constitutional dilemma" has emerged due to ongoing Supreme Court proceedings on the Other Backward Classes (OBC) quota in local bodies.</p>.<p>Bawankule was responding to a question on whether Zilla Parishad (ZP) elections, dates for which have not been announced yet, could be pushed ahead.</p>.<p>"A constitutional dilemma has been created and we need to find a solution to it. I think the hearing is scheduled on November 25. I do not know what decision the State Election Commission will take after the Supreme Court decision. The matter has reached a critical stage," he said on Sunday.</p>.Nagpur has been a guiding force for India’s social, cultural awakening: Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis.<p>The apex court is set to hear the case related to quota for OBCs in civic and rural bodies on Tuesday.</p>.<p>"The Supreme Court itself has asked the state to complete all local governing body polls before January 31 next year," Bawankule pointed out.</p>.<p>Petitioners have argued that in several local governing bodies, reservations cross the 50 per cent ceiling if OBCs are given a 27 per cent quota. This 50 per cent ceiling, upheld in several verdicts, restricts governments from breaching the mark unless exceptional circumstances are shown.</p>.<p>This has placed the state in a constitutional and political dilemma, sources said.</p>.<p>If the government reduces the OBC quota to stay within the 50 per cent cap, it risks a strong political backlash from OBC communities, that are an important electoral force in rural Maharashtra, they added.</p>.<p>Political parties believe that curbing OBC representation will carry electoral costs, the sources asserted.</p>.<p>The court's upcoming hearing is expected to clarify whether the ZP polls will proceed as scheduled or will require a fresh timeline, they said. </p>
<p>Mumbai: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/india/maharashtra">Maharashtra </a>minister and senior BJP leader Chandrashekhar Bawankule has said a "constitutional dilemma" has emerged due to ongoing Supreme Court proceedings on the Other Backward Classes (OBC) quota in local bodies.</p>.<p>Bawankule was responding to a question on whether Zilla Parishad (ZP) elections, dates for which have not been announced yet, could be pushed ahead.</p>.<p>"A constitutional dilemma has been created and we need to find a solution to it. I think the hearing is scheduled on November 25. I do not know what decision the State Election Commission will take after the Supreme Court decision. The matter has reached a critical stage," he said on Sunday.</p>.Nagpur has been a guiding force for India’s social, cultural awakening: Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis.<p>The apex court is set to hear the case related to quota for OBCs in civic and rural bodies on Tuesday.</p>.<p>"The Supreme Court itself has asked the state to complete all local governing body polls before January 31 next year," Bawankule pointed out.</p>.<p>Petitioners have argued that in several local governing bodies, reservations cross the 50 per cent ceiling if OBCs are given a 27 per cent quota. This 50 per cent ceiling, upheld in several verdicts, restricts governments from breaching the mark unless exceptional circumstances are shown.</p>.<p>This has placed the state in a constitutional and political dilemma, sources said.</p>.<p>If the government reduces the OBC quota to stay within the 50 per cent cap, it risks a strong political backlash from OBC communities, that are an important electoral force in rural Maharashtra, they added.</p>.<p>Political parties believe that curbing OBC representation will carry electoral costs, the sources asserted.</p>.<p>The court's upcoming hearing is expected to clarify whether the ZP polls will proceed as scheduled or will require a fresh timeline, they said. </p>