Jaipur: The Rajasthan High Court has delivered a major decision regarding the long-pending panchayat and municipal body elections in the state. The Court has directed the Rajasthan government and the State Election Commission to complete the elections by July 31, 2026.
The Court also ordered the OBC Commission to submit its report by June 20 so that the reservation process can be finalized and the election schedule can be announced.
The judgment was delivered on Friday by a division bench comprising Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma and Justice Sanjeet Purohit. The bench had reserved its verdict on May 11 after hearing arguments from both sides.
The state government had requested the High Court to allow postponement of the panchayat and urban local body elections until December 2026. The government argued that the elections could not be conducted within the earlier deadline because the OBC Commission report was still pending, ward delimitation work was incomplete, there was a shortage of staff, and EVMs and other resources were unavailable.
However, the High Court refused to accept these arguments and observed that democratic elections cannot be delayed indefinitely. The Court fixed July 31, 2026 as the final deadline for conducting the elections.
Earlier, on November 14, 2025, the High Court had heard 439 petitions together and directed the government to complete the elections by April 15, 2026. Since the government failed to meet that deadline, both the state government and the State Election Commission approached the Court seeking more time.
The government informed the Court that the OBC reservation determination process was still incomplete because the Commission’s report had not yet been received. It also cited several administrative and practical difficulties in conducting elections.
The government further argued that the terms of several Panchayat Samitis and Zila Parishads are due to end between September and December 2026. According to the government, conducting all elections together would support the idea of “One State-One Election” and reduce administrative expenses.
Advocate General Rajendra Prasad told the Court that holding elections during May and June would be difficult because of extreme heat, while July to September would coincide with monsoon season and agricultural activities in rural areas.
The government also stated that around 68,000 polling booths would need to be established across the state, requiring nearly 3.4 lakh employees.
The State Election Commission also supported the government’s stand before the Court. It said elections could not begin until the OBC reservation status became clear and requested additional time to complete the process.
The petitioners, including former MLA Sanyam Lodha and advocate PC Devanda, argued that the state government had been deliberately delaying the elections for the past one and a half years. They alleged that the government was avoiding elections for political reasons and also demanded contempt proceedings for failing to comply with the Court’s earlier order to conduct elections by April 15.
Although the High Court did not initiate strict contempt action against the government, it fixed a final deadline and made it clear that the election process must now move forward.
The Court has now directed the OBC Commission to submit its report by June 20, 2026. After that, the State Election Commission is expected to begin the election process, and notifications for the panchayat and municipal body elections could be issued in the last week of June or early July 2026.