New Delhi: Karnataka High Court has given a big decision in the matter of reservation. The court rejected a 2022 law of the state government, which had a provision to increase the reservation of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. With this decision, the reservation limit in the state has again returned to its old position. Actually, under this law, the reservation of Scheduled Castes i.e. SC was increased from 15 percent to 17 percent. Whereas the reservation of Scheduled Tribe i.e. ST was increased from 3 percent to 7 percent. Due to this, the total reservation crossed the limit of 50 percent and reached 56 percent.
The law was passed during the then Basavaraj Bommai government. After the approval of the Governor, it was published in the Gazette on 12 January 2023.
Why did the court cancel?
The bench of Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice KS Hemalekha clearly said that this law is against the Constitution. According to the court, Section 3 of the Act violates the 50 percent limit by increasing the reservation of seats in educational institutions. This violates Articles 14 and 15. There was a provision in Section 4 to increase reservation in government jobs, which the court said was against Articles 14 and 16. Both provisions were struck down as unconstitutional.
Importance of 50 percent limit
The Supreme Court had set a maximum limit of 50 percent for reservation in the Indira Sawhney case of 1992. This limit was maintained in many subsequent decisions also. On these grounds, this law was challenged through two petitions in the High Court. The court gave its verdict keeping these precedents in mind.
Deputy Chief Minister's reaction
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara termed this decision as serious. He said that this will affect social justice, education and government jobs. Expressing respect for the judiciary, he said that this decision raises questions on the accountability of the former BJP government and the inaction of the Centre. This decision is again sparking discussion regarding the extent of reservation. It will be interesting to see what further steps the state government takes now.