The Cabinet, at its recent meeting, opted to hold the gram panchayat polls under the existing 50 percent reservation matrix — despite having originally promised a 42 percent Backward Class (BC) quota.
Published Nov 21, 2025 | 1:13 PM ⚊ Updated Nov 21, 2025 | 1:13 PM
Telangana Congress leaders with Rahul Gandhi.
Synopsis: The ruling Congress in Telangana is gearing up to ride the momentum straight into the gram panchayat elections before the political winds shift. Nearly ₹3,000 crore from the 15th Finance Commission remains stuck with the Union government simply because there are no duly elected panchayat bodies. With governance sliding downhill and public perception taking a beating, the Congress appears willing to take this political gamble.
Fresh off its thumping win in the Jubilee Hills by-election, the ruling Congress in Telangana seems to be smelling blood in the water. Determined to strike while the iron is hot, the party is gearing up to ride the momentum straight into the gram panchayat elections before the political winds shift.
These long-pending rural elections — kept in cold storage since 1 February 2024 — have pushed governance to the brink. Nearly ₹3,000 crore from the 15th Finance Commission remains stuck with the Union government simply because there are no duly elected gram panchayat bodies.
The longer the delay, the deeper the rot: No elected representatives, no funds, no meaningful services, and villagers left high and dry. With its rural image taking a beating day after day, the Congress is now in a flat-out sprint to turn the tide.
The Cabinet, at its recent meeting, opted to hold the gram panchayat polls under the existing 50 percent reservation matrix — despite having originally promised a 42 percent Backward Class (BC) quota. The ruling party knew the decision would ruffle feathers among BC communities, but crossing the Supreme Court’s 50 percent cap was a red line it could not afford to breach.
With governance sliding downhill and public perception taking a beating, the Congress appears willing to take this political gamble.
The state had earlier made a spirited attempt to push the 42 percent BC quota by passing bills and issuing a government order. But the efforts hit a wall in Delhi, where the bills have been gathering dust pending inclusion in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution.
The Government Order (GO) issued by the government also ran into a roadblock when the Telangana High Court stayed it for breaching the reservation cap, though the court simultaneously gave the green signal to go ahead with polls within the 50 percent ceiling.
The dedicated Backward Classes Commission, headed by retired IAS officer Busani Venkateswara Rao, submitted its revised reservation blueprint on Thursday, 20 November.
Playing strictly by the book—and keeping the courts at arm’s length — the commission stuck to the tried-and-tested formula used by the previous BRS government: 10 percent for Scheduled Tribes (STs), 15 percent for Scheduled Castes (SCs), and 25 percent for BCs, neatly adding up to the mandated 50 percent.
Women retain a robust 50 percent horizontal quota across the board, with the remaining half of the seats left open in the general category.
With the legal roadblock cleared, the State Election Commission (SEC) is now revving up to announce the poll schedule as early as 26 November — a make-or-break milestone to put grassroots democracy back on its feet.
Information and Public Relations Minister Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy, after the recent cabinet meeting, said: “The Centre sat on our 42 percent BC quota bills, tying our hands. We are reverting to the earlier matrix so the gram panchayats can secure the ₹3,000 crore from the 15th Finance Commission. We can’t let governance bleed any longer.”
Moving swiftly, the SEC has directed district collectors to finalise reservations in a strict sequence — STs first, SCs next, BCs after that, and women last.
Sarpanch reservations will be settled by RDOs, while MPDOs will handle ward-level allocations. Amendments to the Panchayat Raj Act, 2018, now make rotation of reserved seats compulsory — ensuring no candidate clings to the same reserved seat election after election.
The elections will cover all 1,13,534 ward seats across 12,760 gram panchayats, barring a handful currently under court stay.
The polls are expected to roll out in three phases, with at least a two-day breather between each, giving police forces and election staff the breathing room needed to reposition and manage security.
More than 15,522 polling stations will be set up across the state to handle nearly 1.67 crore rural voters, who will mark their choices the old-school way, with paper ballots and ballot boxes sourced from neighbouring states.
The Model Code of Conduct will come into effect the moment the poll schedule is announced. Meanwhile, electoral rolls are being finalised, with final lists set for publication on 23 November.
SEC Chief I Rani Kumudini is personally overseeing the preparations as district officials work overtime to meet the tight deadlines.
The poll battle, expected to be in three phases, will get underway immediately after the Praja Palana Vijayotsavalu (1–9 December), marking two years of Congress rule.
The entire exercise is expected to wrap up by mid-December. If all goes as planned, the wheels of rural governance will finally begin to roll again, funds will flow, development projects will take off, and the Congress can breathe easier— its rural report card no longer bleeding red.
For Telangana’s villages, the long wait is almost over. The cavalry is coming, and it’s coming at full gallop.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil.)
