Jaipur: Local Self Government (LSG) minister Jhabar Singh Kharra, Wednesday, said the timeline for Rajasthan’s long-pending urban local body (ULB) elections now rests with the State Election Commission and the OBC Commission, asserting that his department has completed all procedures required for the polls.“The State Election Commission and the OBC Commission will now decide the dates and timelines. The LSG department has completed its work,” Kharra said.His remarks come after repeated delays in civic polls. Earlier this year, Kharra announced three separate timelines for ULB elections under the proposed “One State, One Election” model, but none materialised.The minister said the department had completed key preparatory work, including the merger of three municipal corporations, ward delimitation and other statutory formalities. However, elections remain pending as the OBC Commission is yet to complete the reservation exercise.Kharra said the delay was due to compliance with the Supreme Court-mandated “Triple Test” for OBC reservations in local body elections. Panchayat polls are also awaiting completion of the same process.He said the OBC Commission’s work slowed because staff were deployed for the Election Commission of India’s Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls and later for the 16th decennial Census.Following a recent notification, the number of urban local bodies in Rajasthan has risen from 309 to 385. The state plans to hold elections for all of them together under the “One State, One Election” framework. Until then, all urban local bodies continue to be run by administrators.The State Election Commission has indicated that elections can be conducted within 90 days of completion of the reservation process, including 50 days for panchayat polls and 40 days for phased ULB elections.
