The Other Backward Classes (OBC) Triple Test survey in Jharkhand remains in limbo, weighed down by the vacant post of Chairperson in the State Backward Classes Commission. The survey, meant to assess the social, economic, and political status of OBCs in urban local bodies, is crucial for ensuring constitutionally compliant reservation, but procedural roadblocks have cast uncertainty over its timeline and legal standing.
After protracted efforts, survey reports from all 24 districts have reached the commission. The process of synthesising these findings is now underway, with the commission preparing to entrust the task to a reputed academic or socio-economic research institution. The tender process concludes on 19 June, after which the selected agency will be given a 45-day window to complete the report.
Commission Secretary Krishna Kumar Singh expressed hope that the task could be completed within a month, citing Madhya Pradesh’s model as the template.
Yet the absence of a Chairperson—vacant since 14 October 2024—remains the most pressing obstacle. Under constitutional provisions, the Chairperson alone holds the authority to endorse and release such a report. With the commission currently functioning with just two members and the secretary, and no interim chair designated, the report may have to be submitted through the Welfare Secretary instead. “By statute, the Chairperson is the custodian of the report. In absence of an appointment, it will go to the government through the Welfare Department,” Singh confirmed.
The survey covers 48 urban local bodies across the state, including 9 municipal corporations such as Ranchi, Dhanbad, Hazaribagh and Deoghar; 20 municipal councils; and 19 nagar panchayats. It forms the bedrock of a constitutionally mandated triple test required to implement OBC reservations in local bodies.
In its absence, urban local body elections in Jharkhand have been stalled for years. The matter is also under judicial scrutiny, with a contempt petition pending before the Jharkhand High Court. This legal pressure has added urgency to the commission’s efforts.
However, legal experts warn that any report finalised and submitted without a chairperson’s signature could face constitutional challenges. Concerns around the report’s legitimacy may complicate its acceptance and further delay the electoral process.
The commission has committed to completing the process on schedule, but a decisive step from the state government in appointing a chairperson is seen as essential to safeguard the integrity of the survey and ensure compliance with judicial and constitutional mandates. In the balance hangs not only the future of OBC representation in Jharkhand’s urban politics, but also the credibility of institutional governance itself.