Hyderabad, Oct 8 (NationPress) President of the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC), Mahesh Kumar Goud, has expressed strong confidence that the electoral process for rural local bodies in Telangana will commence on Thursday as planned.

The State Election Commission is expected to release a notification on Thursday for the initial phase of elections concerning Zilla Parishad Territorial Constituencies (ZPTCs) and Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituencies (MPTCs).

The first phase of these elections is slated for October 23.

Nevertheless, the recent filing of two petitions in the High Court questioning the 42 percent reservation for Backward Classes (BCs) has introduced some uncertainty regarding the poll notification.

The High Court has scheduled a hearing on the petitions, which has been adjourned to Thursday afternoon.

While the petitioners sought a stay on the electoral process, the court denied this request and has rescheduled the case for 2:15 p.m. on Thursday for additional examination.

The TPCC leader remains assured that the nomination process for the elections will proceed as per the schedule. He is also optimistic that the High Court will uphold the Government Order, which ensures a 42 percent reservation for Backward Classes.

In statements to the media, Goud indicated that the government had presented compelling arguments backing the Backward Class reservation. He noted that a caste survey had been conducted for the first time in 90 years, which led to the decision to allocate a 42 percent quota to Backward Classes.

Highlighting the government's commitment to Backward Class reservation, Goud accused the opposition parties, BJP and BRS, of conspiring to undermine the enhanced quota for Backward Classes.

He is also convinced that the Congress party will secure victories in 90 percent of local bodies.

Polls for ZPTCs, MPTCs, and Gram Panchayats are scheduled to unfold over five phases from October to November.

The elections for MPTCs and ZPTCs will occur in two phases on October 23 and October 27, while Gram Panchayats will vote in three phases on October 31, November 4, and November 8.

Approximately 1.67 crore individuals will be eligible to cast their votes in these elections.

Counting of votes cast in ZPTCs and MPTCs will take place on November 11, while the counting for Gram Panchayats will follow the polling.

The elections will be conducted across 565 mandals in 31 districts. Polling will take place for 565 ZPTCs, 5,749 MPTCs, 12,733 gram panchayats, and 1,12,288 wards.