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Bengaluru: The Karnataka government has filed a Special Leave Petition in the Supreme Court against the High Court judgment that struck down the state’s increase in reservation for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
The state had raised SC reservation from 15 per cent to 17 per cent and ST reservation from 3 per cent to 7 per cent. The High Court set the increase aside on the ground that the mandatory consultation with the National Commissions for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes had not been held, and held that letters sent to the Centre after the law was enacted did not meet that requirement.
The Cabinet decided on October 15 to appeal, and a government order dated October 27 sanctioned the appeal, the state government said. It said the petition was filed within 16 days of the judgment.
The government said the Legislative Assembly had on December 18, 2025 passed a resolution seeking protection of the increase through the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution and urging the Centre to include the total 56 per cent reservation in it. It said it will pursue the appeal and, together with the Centre, seek a constitutional amendment.
In February 2026, recruitment for 56,432 posts was approved, with an additional 6 per cent of posts held in backlog for SC and ST candidates until the court decides, so that their share is not lost. The government also pointed to sub-categorisation within Scheduled Castes to reach the most backward communities.
The increase follows the July 2020 recommendation of the Justice H.N. Nagamohan Das Commission, which also advised placing it in the Ninth Schedule. The previous BJP government issued an ordinance and passed an Act before the 2023 Assembly elections. On July 25, 2026, the Union government told Parliament it would defer the state’s request as the case was pending in the High Court.
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