The Supreme Court (SC) on Monday, December 1, 2025, dismissed a petition challenging the validity of the delimitation process for local bodies in Maharashtra, emphasizing that no further delays will be permitted in conducting the long-pending elections in the state.
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi rejected the plea filed by Nikhil K. Kolekar, who had questioned the delegation of powers by the State Election Commission (SEC) to divisional commissioners for approving the final delimitation proposals. The court made it clear that it would not entertain any plea that could further delay the polls. It stressed that the electoral process, which has been stalled since 2022, must now proceed without any impediments. The Supreme Court stated the petition appeared to be a tactic to delay elections.
The bench referred to the Bombay High Court's September 30 judgment, noting that the petitioner had not challenged the original communications through which the SEC and the state government empowered divisional commissioners (DCs) to undertake delimitation. The High Court had examined detailed records and found no illegality in the delimitation decisions taken for Kolhapur, Satara, and Sangli. While dismissing the plea, the Supreme Court clarified that the larger question of law on whether such delegation is permissible may be considered in an appropriate case.
The Supreme Court had previously directed that all local body polls in the state be completed by January 31, 2026. The court has emphasized that once the SEC announces the schedule and the SC itself has passed categorical directions, the court will not step in to disrupt or derail the timetable.
The conduct of local body elections in Maharashtra has been a contentious issue since 2022, resulting in multiple rounds of litigation and directions from the top court. In May 2025, the Supreme Court directed the State to conduct local body elections within four months, applying the Other Backward Classes (OBC) reservation regime that existed before the Banthia Commission report. Last week, the Court further directed the SEC to notify elections without exceeding the 50 percent reservation ceiling. The court is scheduled to take up on January 21 the petitions concerning OBC reservation and the validity of the Banthia Commission's findings, assigning the matter to a three-judge bench. The bench stressed that while reservation issues remain unresolved and contentious, particularly concerning the report of the Banthia Commission, the functioning of local bodies cannot be held hostage, and elections must proceed.
