DK Shivakumar to seek Ninth Schedule for SC/ST quota boost in Karnataka
· India · Hindustan Times, The Hindu
Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar said his government will approach Prime Minister Narendra Modi to seek Ninth Schedule protection for the expanded SC/ST reservations after the High Court struck down the 2022 quota law. The High Court had struck down the increase in SC quota from 15% to 17% and ST quota from 3% to 7%, pushing the state's overall reservation to 56%, above the 50% Supreme Court ceiling set in the 1992 Indra Sawhney judgment. Shivakumar has tasked senior ministers G Parameshwara, HC Muniyappa and Satish Jarkiholi to oversee the Supreme Court appeal and coordinate the state's legal response, citing Tamil Nadu's 69% reservation model that survived judicial review under the Ninth Schedule. The government will also write to the Centre seeking the release of ₹1,937 crore in pending central assistance under Centrally Sponsored Schemes for outin 2025-26. The Chief Minister highlighted that Tamil Nadu's law, placed under the Ninth Schedule, survived legal challenges because
Why it matters
The move will directly affect SC and ST communities in Karnataka by potentially restoring the enhanced education and job quotas they had been denied after the High Court ruling, offering them better access to reservations. It also impacts the state’s finances as the government seeks additional central funds of ₹1,937 crore for development schemes, while setting up a legal challenge that could influence similar quota disputes across other Indian states. Tamil Nadu’s example of a 69% reservation u
Read the original report — Hindustan Times
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