Jharkhand High Court Clears Deck for Urban Polls; Rejects Challenge to Reservation Matrix
W.P. (C). No. 7296 of 2025
By Sandhya kaika
The Jharkhand High Court has dismissed a writ petition challenging the state’s new reservation policy for the upcoming 2026 Urban Local Bodies (ULB) elections. The Division Bench of Chief Justice M.S. Sonak and Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad upheld the government’s decision to classify municipal corporations based on population and maintain a 50% reservation ceiling.
The petitioner, Santanu Kumar Chandra, moved the court seeking a mandate to reserve the Mayor’s post in Dhanbad Municipal Corporation for the Scheduled Caste (SC) category. He argued that Dhanbad has the state’s highest SC population (1,99,509 as per the 2011 Census) and that the current “General” classification violates the principle of descending order of population established in the 2022 amendment to the Jharkhand Municipal Act.
Further, the petitioner challenged the state’s sub-categorization of the nine municipal corporations into “Varg Ka” (Ranchi and Dhanbad—million-plus population cities) and “Varg Kha” (the remaining seven).
Validity of Sub-Categorization: The Court ruled that classifying Ranchi and Dhanbad separately as “million-plus” cities is a valid distinction based on demography. This classification followed recommendations from a “Dedicated Commission for Backward Class” to satisfy the “triple test” mandated by the Supreme Court.
The 50% Ceiling: The Bench noted that within the “Varg Ka” category, Ranchi’s Mayor post is reserved for Scheduled Tribes (ST), while Dhanbad remains Unreserved to ensure the total reservation does not exceed the 50% legal limit.
Legislative Intent vs. Floor Debates: The Court rejected the petitioner’s reliance on legislative assembly debates regarding the “rotation” policy. It held that such discussions lack legal enforceability unless explicitly incorporated into the final Act.
Finding no constitutional or statutory violation, the Court dismissed the petition, stating the State Election Commission’s January 8, 2026, notification is in full consonance with the law.
This ruling effectively removes the final legal hurdle for the State Election Commission to proceed with the long-delayed municipal elections.
