Uttar Pradesh: In a major setback for the Yogi Adityanath government, the Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court has quashed the UP government's draft notification for the reservation of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in the urban local body elections. The court has ordered holding the polls without reservation for the OBCs.
The verdict comes on the back of PILs challenging the preparation of the OBC reservation draft without following the triple test formula prescribed by the Supreme Court. Earlier, the state government pleaded that it had conducted a rapid survey and said it was as good as the triple test formula.
After the High Court verdict, UP CM Adityanath has said that its government will set up a commission in the perspective of urban body general elections and will provide reservation facility to the citizens of OBC on the basis of the triple test. But what is the triple test formula?
What is Triple Test Formula?
The ‘triple test’ formula was suggested by the Supreme Court to provide OBC reservation in urban local body (ULB) elections. The formula requires the states to appoint a commission, collect quantifiable data of the community, and allocate reservations to them in local bodies without exceeding 50 percent total reservation.
1. According to the triple test formula, it is necessary to set up a special commission to collect data on the conditions (economic and educational), nature and impact of backwardness of OBCs in local body elections in the state.
2. On the basis of these recommendations, the state government will have to give reservations on a proportional basis in municipal and municipal elections.
3. The state government will also have to keep in mind that the number of seats reserved for SC-ST or OBC should not go beyond the total reservation limit of 50 per cent.
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The state government had earlier this month issued a provisional list of reserved seats for mayors of 17 municipal corporations, chairpersons of 200 municipal councils and 545 nagar panchayats for the three-tier urban local body elections and sought suggestions/objections within seven days.
