Karnataka High Court invalidates increased SC/ST reservation quota

The High Court of Karnataka has struck down state government provisions that increased reservation for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs). A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice K.S. Hemalekha ruled that Sections 3 and 4 of the Karnataka Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Reservation of Seats in Educational Institutions and of Appointments or Posts in the Services under the State) Act, 2022, are ultra vires the Constitution.

Enacted during the former Basavaraj Bommai administration with retrospective effect from November 1, 2022, the legislation had raised SC reservation from 15% to 17% and ST reservation from 3% to 7%. Combined with the existing 32% quota for Other Backward Classes (OBCs), the total reservation in the state reached 56%. The court held that this 56% figure violates the 50% ceiling established by the Supreme Court in the 1992 Indra Sawhney vs Union of India case, which the Bench described as a binding constitutional principle rather than a mere rule of prudence.

The verdict follows a series of petitions, including a public interest litigation filed by social worker Mahendra Kumar Mitra and a separate challenge by civil engineering graduates Sagar H.R. and others regarding recruitment quotas for the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP). In its 170-page judgment, the Bench rejected the state’s argument that the 103rd Constitutional Amendment, which introduced a 10% reservation for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS), invalidated the 50% limit. The court clarified that the EWS quota is carved from the general merit pool and does not authorize the expansion of reservations for backward classes beyond the established ceiling.

What to watch: Future state appeals or legislative attempts to challenge the 50% reservation threshold.

Editor's note: The article is comprehensive, accurately reflects the source's details on the court ruling, the specific legislation, and the background of the petitions.