BC Quota Dipped by 1.39% Due to SC Order, Says Govt

Hyderabad: The state government on Thursday released detailed data on reservations for the upcoming gram panchayat elections, indicating a marginal decline in the quota allotted to Backward Classes (BCs) when compared with the 2019 local body polls.

According to panchayat raj and rural development minister Danasari ‘Seethakka’ Anasuya, BC reservations stood at 22.78 per cent in 2019 and have now marginally reduced to 21.39 per cent, contrary to allegations that the quota had dropped to 17 per cent. She clarified that the change was the outcome of implementing Supreme Court directions prescribing the methodology for determining reservations.

The minister explained that the BRS government, during the 2019 elections, had fixed sarpanch reservations by treating the entire state as a single unit, a method later struck down by the Supreme Court.

For the 2025 elections, reservations for sarpanches are now determined at the mandal level, while ward member reservations are calculated at the gram panchayat level. The minister pointed out that the shift in methodology, along with demographic factors, had resulted in slight variations in category-wise reservation distribution.

Data released by the department showed an increase in the number of seats reserved for Scheduled Tribes (STs). In 2019, 1,177 gram panchayats were reserved for STs, whereas in 2025 the number has risen to 1,248. In non-scheduled areas too, ST-reserved seats increased from 688 to 714.

Officials said BC reservations rose in eight districts in 2025 when compared to 2019, while the increase in ST reservations in non-scheduled areas had a minor impact on quotas available for other categories. The report reiterated that BC reservations do not apply in scheduled areas.

Out of the 12,751 gram panchayats in 2019, 10,293 were non-scheduled, where STs received 6.68 per cent of seats, SCs 20.53 per cent and BCs 22.78 per cent.

Among the 10,233 non-scheduled gram panchayats out of a total of 12,760 in the 2025 elections, STs secured 6.99 per cent reservations, SCs 20.45 per cent and BCs 21.39 per cent.

The minister noted that the 50 per cent cap on total reservations was strictly followed by first deducting SC and ST quotas and then allocating BC reservations based on whichever was lower — either the remaining percentage or the BC population proportion.

The minister also highlighted structural changes since 2019, when 214 gram panchayats were merged into municipalities. To accommodate population distribution, 223 new gram panchayats were created, influencing BC population ratios across units.

Seethakka accused BRS leaders, particularly K.T. Rama Rao, of spreading falsehoods about the Congress government reducing BC reservations to 17 per cent, asserting that the claim was “completely untrue” and aimed at misleading BC communities.

Seethakka said the Congress had consistently supported BC empowerment, recalling that the party had allocated 34 per cent BC reservations in the 2014 local body elections, before the BRS government reduced them to 22 per cent in 2019. She said the Congress government had completed the caste census, passed an Assembly resolution, and appointed a dedicated BC commission in line with Supreme Court directives to finalise reservations in a scientific manner.

Pointing to agency areas like Bhadrachalam, Mulugu and Adilabad, she said 100 per cent ST reservations had been allotted based on population and PESA Act norms. The increase in ST seats, she added, was a natural result of several new thandas and gudems being upgraded into gram panchayats.

The minister accused the BRS of attempting to create social divisions for political gain and reminded that the party had opposed the caste census and created legal hurdles to BC reservations in the past.

She said that the Congress would continue its fight for enhancing BC reservations and was also prepared to allot 42 per cent party tickets to BC candidates in local body polls. Warning that delaying panchayat elections could block Rs 3,000 crore in 15th Finance Commission's central grants crucial for rural development, she said the government was committed to pushing ahead with reforms and ensuring justice to BCs.