Karnataka Chief Minister D K Shivakumar. The Karnataka government has SLP in the Supreme Court challenging the High Court verdict that quashed the increase in reservation for SCs from 15% to 17% and STs from 3% to 7%.(Photo Courtesy: @DKShivakumar/X)
Bengaluru, November 11 (IANS): The Karnataka government has filed a Special Leave Petition (SLP) in the Supreme Court challenging the High Court verdict that quashed the increase in reservation for Scheduled Castes (SCs) from 15 per cent to 17 per cent and Scheduled Tribes (STs) from 3 per cent to 7 per cent.
According to a government statement released by the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) on Wednesday, approval to file an appeal before the Supreme Court was granted through a government order dated October 27, 2026, and the SLP was filed on October 28.
The Congress government said it had taken several measures to protect reservation rights and ensure that the benefits of the increased quota were not lost. It pointed out that a resolution seeking protection for the enhanced reservation under the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution was moved and passed in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly on December 18, 2025.
In February 2026, the government also approved recruitment to 56,432 posts. An additional six per cent of posts meant for SC and ST candidates have been kept under a backlog arrangement until the court delivers its final verdict, ensuring that the candidates do not lose their share, the statement said.
The government also implemented internal reservation within the Scheduled Castes to ensure that the benefits of reservation reach the most backward communities among them.
The Cabinet decided to file an appeal on October 15, 2026, and the petition was submitted within 16 days of the High Court verdict, the government said.
It added that efforts to persuade the Union government to include the enhanced reservation in the Ninth Schedule would continue, describing it as the only permanent legal protection against future challenges.
The government said it would pursue both the legal battle in the Supreme Court and efforts to secure a constitutional amendment in coordination with the Centre to protect the rights of SCs, STs and other backward communities in Karnataka.
The state government also criticised the previous BJP government, alleging that it had failed to secure constitutional protection for the reservation hike.
It said the Justice H.N. Nagamohan Das Commission had recommended an increase in reservation in July 2020 and suggested that the enhanced quota be included in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution to protect it from legal challenges.
However, on October 7, 2022, the then Law Minister J.C. Madhuswamy had publicly stated that the reservation increase would be included in the Ninth Schedule, but the BJP government instead issued an ordinance and subsequently passed legislation ahead of the 2023 Assembly elections, the statement alleged.
The government further referred to a statement made in Parliament on March 21, 2023, by A. Narayanaswamy, then BJP MP from Chitradurga and Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment, that no proposal regarding the reservation increase had been received from Karnataka.
Two days later, with only seven weeks remaining for the Assembly elections, the state government wrote to the Centre on the issue, it said.
The High Court, in its verdict, had held that consultation with the National Commissions for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes was mandatory and that letters sent after the enactment of the law did not fulfil this requirement, the statement said.
It alleged that the BJP government, despite being in power both at the Centre and in the state, had failed to secure the necessary constitutional amendment that could have protected the reservation increase from judicial scrutiny.
The Congress government also accused the Union government of failing to act on Karnataka's demand for constitutional protection.
On December 18, 2025, the Karnataka Legislative Assembly passed a resolution urging the Centre to include the 56 per cent reservation in the Ninth Schedule.
However, on July 25, 2026, the Union government informed Parliament that the request would be deferred as the matter was pending before the High Court, the statement said.
It pointed out that despite Karnataka having five Union Ministers and 19 BJP and JD(S) MPs in the Lok Sabha, no constitutional amendment had been introduced to provide protection for the enhanced reservation.
The government said the failure to secure constitutional protection, initially in 2023 and subsequently, had compelled it to approach the Supreme Court to safeguard the reservation rights of SCs and STs.
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