Karnataka HC strikes down enhanced SC, ST quotas for breaching 50% cap

The Karnataka High Court on Monday struck down provisions of a 2022 law that increased reservations for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) in educational institutions and state government jobs, ruling that the enhanced quotas breached the 50% ceiling.

A division bench of Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice KS Hemalekha declared Sections 3 and 4 of the Act unconstitutional, Bar and Bench reported.

The law increased reservations for SC communities from 15% to 17% and for ST communities from 3% to 7%. With the 32% quota for Other Backward Classes unchanged, the overall reservation in Karnataka rose from 50% to 56%.

The Act received the governor’s assent in January 2023 during the previous Bharatiya Janata Party government and was given retrospective effect from November 1, 2022. Section 3 covered reservations in educational institutions, while Section 4 dealt with state government jobs.

The court held that Section 3 violated Articles 14 and 15 of the Constitution, while Section 4 violated Articles 14 and 16, which guarantee equality before the law, prohibit caste-based discrimination and ensure equal opportunity in public employment.

The state government argued that more than 90% of Karnataka’s population belonged to SC, ST and Other Backward communities, and that reservations should reflect their share of the population.

Rejecting the argument, the bench said inadequate representation did not justify exceeding the 50% ceiling established by the Supreme Court in 1992. “To accept the said contention would be destructive of the principle of equality enshrined under the Constitution,” Bar and Bench quoted the court as saying.

The bench also rejected the state’s argument that the 103rd Constitutional Amendment, which introduced a 10% quota for Economically Weaker Sections in 2019, had removed the ceiling.

The ruling came on petitions challenging the enhanced reservation matrix, including one filed by civil engineering graduates over recruitment to the Bengaluru municipal body.

The court further held that the state should have consulted the National Commissions for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes before introducing the changes. Letters sent to the commissions in December 2025 and January 2026 came nearly three years after the law was enacted and after it was challenged in court.