Jaipur: The Rajasthan High Court Wednesday admonished the state govt over its persistent delay in holding panchayat and local body elections, holding that administrative challenges in conducting timely polls cannot come at the cost of undermining judicial directives.Expressing strong displeasure over the govt’s repeated failure to implement earlier orders in the matter, a bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma and Justice Sanjeet Purohit summoned the state election commissioner and the OBC Commission secretary-adviser, asking them to appear before it Thursday – either in person or virtually – to explain the delay.The bench noted its concerns about the operations of the State Election Commission (SEC) and the OBC Commission, and warned the govt against compelling the court to issue more stringent orders.“If the State Election Commission is incapable of conducting the polls, we may appoint someone from the high court to supervise the process,” the bench remarked.In response, the state govt sought an extension, arguing that nearly 50% of Rajasthan’s population belongs to the Other Backward Classes (OBCs), and establishing constitutionally valid political reservations for this category must occur prior to announcing an electoral schedule.Arguing for the govt, advocate general Rajendra Prasad emphasised that the govt was not resisting the court’s orders, but was hamstrung by the delay surrounding the OBC Commission’s report on reservation of seats for OBCs.The state indicated that the OBC Commission would submit its findings by Aug 14, and set a target to finalise reservation specifics by Aug 31.The hearing arose from a contempt plea filed by former MLA Sanyam Lodha, who alleged intentional disregard for the court’s directions regarding the elections.Advocate Puneet Singhvi, appearing for Lodha, said the situation appeared to be a “prima facie case of contempt”.He went on to accuse the state govt and the SEC of stalling the elections, given that the high court’s May 22 order mandated that reliance on the OBC Commission’s report was unnecessary if it remained unsubmitted.GFXWhat’s Behind The Hold-Up?Rajasthan HC, on Nov 2025, had directed the state govt to complete local body polls by April 15, 2026When this deadline was not met, ex-MLA Sanyam Lodha filed a plea alleging intentional disregard of court ordersOn Wednesday, the state govt cited the pending exercise of finalising seat reservation for OBCs as the reason for the delayThe govt argued this was constitutionally necessary because OBCs constitute nearly 50% of the state’s populationOBC Commission expected to submit its report by Aug 14, the govt said, with reservation details likely to be finalised by Aug 31
