SC slams Karnataka government for scrapping 4% Muslim OBC quota
The Supreme Court on Thursday reprimanded Karnataka's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government for scrapping the state's 4% Muslim OBC quota, calling the foundation of the decision "highly shaky and flawed." However, the court refused to stay the order after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta assured it that nothing irreversible will happen until Tuesday—the SC's deadline for the government to submit a reply in the matter.
Why does this story matter?
The state government's decision comes as yet another setback for Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai's government, which will face an election on May 10. Notably, the government withdrew the Muslim quota two days before the poll announcement. Furthermore, the party is witnessing a mutiny by snubbed leaders after the BJP dropped seven MLAs and added 52 new candidates for the state Assembly elections.
SC questions the sudden change in three-decade-old reservation
Hearing a petition on the matter, the bench of Justices KM Joseph and BV Nagarathna observed that Muslims in Karnataka had been enjoying reservations for a long time based on documents that showed them as backward. It questioned the government on scrapping the quota suddenly based on an interim report, instead of waiting for the final report.
Government 'falsely claimed' there's no empirical data: Petitioner's counsel
Appearing for the Muslim community, Senior Advocates Kapil Sibal and Dushyant Dave argued that the interim report advises against altering the existing status of reservations without proper study. Dave submitted that empirical data shows the Muslim community in Karnataka is backward and is entitled to reservations. He said reservation is not largesse; it is a right and the minority community needs the court's protection.
4% Muslim OBC quota distributed among Lingayats and Vokkaligas
Notably, the Karnataka government quashed the 4% Muslim quota and distributed it equally between the Lingayat and Vokkaliga communities. Appearing for the two communities, Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi submitted that a stay on the impugned government order could lead to prejudice among both communities. Observing that both the communities had enjoyed reservations earlier as well, Justice Nagarathna, however, questioned the need for additional quota.
BJP gave tickets to 60 Linagayats, 43 Vokkaligas
The Lingayat community is known to be politically strong in the region and forms around 17% of the state's population. Of the 22 chief ministers of Karnataka to date, nine were Lingayats. They are also considered the BJP's core vote bank. Bommai and former CM BS Yediyurappa are also Lingayats. Among the BJP's 212 declared candidates, 60 are Lingayats and 43 are Vokkaligas.
