"Using it as lab for politics": BRS leader Srinivas Goud slams Telangana govt over 42% reservation in local bodies

Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], October 10 (ANI): Following the Telangana High Court's stay on the local body polls amid a petition against the 42 per cent backward class reservation, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader V Srinivas Goud slammed the Congress government, saying they are using the State as a "laboratory" for politics.
Speaking to ANI on Thursday, Srinivas Goud claimed that the Telangana government does not want to provide reservations and is taking such a step with regard to the Bihar Assembly polls.
Goud said, "This government does not want to give the reservation. They are doing this for the Bihar elections. They are using it as a laboratory for Indian politics. If the government wants to give the reservation, then they should include BC in the new schedule."
Meanwhile, Congress MP Anil Kumar Yadav said that the government is hoping to get a judgment in its favour.
"The judge has heard the arguments from both sides. Somehow, we hope the judgment will be in our favour. This is the experience of many years; many generations have fought over this," Yadav said.
This comes after the Telangana HC on Thursday granted an interim stay on the notification for local body elections in the state.
The bench allowed petitions challenging the state government's order providing 42 per cent reservation to the Backward Classes in local bodies.
The state government has been given four weeks to file a counter-affidavit, and the petitioner has been given two weeks to respond to the government.
"The counter should be submitted in 15 days for all parties...," Advocate Govardhan Reddy told ANI.
The Telangana assembly had, in August this year, passed the Panchayat Raj (Amendment) Bill, 2025 and Telangana Municipalities (Amendment) Bill 2025 to facilitate the implementation of 42 per cent reservation for Backward Classes.
The State Election Commission, meanwhile, has issued a notification, suspending the September 29 notification issued for the conduct of the local body polls.
The October 9 notification said, "...The Election Gazette Notification G-762/1 dated September 29 issued for the conduct of elections to the MPTCS/ZPTCS in the State of Telangana, is hereby kept in abeyance with immediate effect, until further Notification."
"The Telangana State Election Commission hereby calls upon the registered voters in all the Zilla Praja Parishad Territorial Constituencies in the State, all the Mandal Praja Parishad Territorial Constituencies in the State that in pursuance of Hon'ble High Court directions on October 9 the Model Code of Conduct and Nominations filed and all other process and proceedings pursuant to the Election Notification dated September 29 shall be suspended forthwith and shall remain suspended until further Notification of the Commission," the State Election Commission said. (ANI)