Panaji: The state cabinet on Friday approved amendments to the Goa Municipalities Act, 1968, to ensure fair elections and representation based on the population of municipal areas, while bringing clarity to the reservation of seats for Other Backward Classes (OBCs).The proposed bill seeks to amend the act in accordance with Supreme Court judgments in the cases of K Krishnan Murthy and Vikas Kishanrao Gawali (2021), particularly on reservation for OBCs based on empirical data on political backwardness.It also incorporates the Bombay high court at Goa’s ruling in the case of Manuel Borges and Moreno Carlos Rebelo, under which fractions below 0.5 are ignored while determining the number of reserved seats. The amendment seeks to provide clarity on seat reservation when calculations result in fractions.The Bill proposes a time-bound procedure for public participation at various stages of the election process, from the division of municipal areas to reservation of seats. It provides for objections and suggestions from the public within a stipulated period before final notifications are issued.“It provides for procedure and time in respect of empirical data in respect of political backwardness, thereby conducting elections in a free and fair and transparent manner and with public participation,” the Bill said.The proposed amendments also provide for the use of the electoral roll of the Goa legislative assembly, prepared under the Representation of the People Act, 1950, for municipal elections.
