Rajasthan local body elections: Court sets November 15 deadline after OBC report
Rajasthan will complete its long-awaited elections to Panchayati Raj and urban local bodies by November 15 this year, following the submission of a report by the Other Backward Classes (OBC) Political Representation Commission in August, the state government informed the Rajasthan High Court on Monday.
The Bharatiya Janata Party government submitted the election schedule during a hearing on a batch of public interest petitions. The High Court had on November 14, 2025, directed the state to complete the delimitation process by December 31, 2025, and hold the polls by April 15, 2026.
After the court's strict observations, the Local Self-Government Department and Panchayati Raj Department filed an affidavit stating that the classification of wards for reservation would be completed within 10 days after the OBC Commission's report is submitted.
According to the affidavit, the reservation for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes and women will be determined through a lottery process by August 15. Following this, the State Election Commission will initiate the election process.
Advocate-General representing the state told the Division Bench led by Acting Chief Justice S.P. Sharma that urban local body elections would be notified on August 17 and completed by September 20. Panchayat elections would be notified on September 23 and completed by November 15.
Elections are due for approximately 14,000 village panchayats and over 300 municipalities. The state government informed the court that delimitation of local bodies and revision of voter lists have already been completed, and holding polls in phases would require about 50 days.
The court disposed of the petitions after recording the state government's assurance on the timeline. The petitions were filed by citizen Giriraj Singh Devanda and former MLA Sanyam Lodha over the delay in conducting elections. The High Court had on April 2 issued contempt notices to the State Election Commission and Election Commissioner Rajeshwar Singh, citing the delay despite its previous order.
The Opposition Congress has criticised the BJP government, alleging that the postponement of elections amounts to an attack on democracy. Congress leaders claimed the BJP feared defeat due to its "misgovernance" during the last two-and-a-half years, while the state government cited administrative and legal constraints.
