The Karnataka government is examining an appeal in the Supreme Court against a High Court verdict that struck down the increase in reservations for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in educational admissions and government recruitment, Deputy Chief Minister G. Parameshwara said in a statement.
The reservation increase had raised the quota for Scheduled Castes from 15% to 17% and for Scheduled Tribes from 3% to 7%. The High Court’s decision has created uncertainty around the implementation of the enhanced quotas and could affect ongoing recruitment processes and educational opportunities, according to Parameshwara.
The Deputy Chief Minister said the government would examine all available legal options, including filing an appeal before the Supreme Court. He added that necessary steps would also be considered to provide protection, within the legal framework, to recruitment processes and educational opportunities currently under way.
The decision comes against the backdrop of Karnataka’s total reservation exceeding the 50% ceiling. The increase in Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe reservations had taken the overall reservation level in the state to 56%, according to the statement. Parameshwara said the government would seek a comprehensive reconsideration of the 50% ceiling and appropriate constitutional and legislative measures to protect the state’s reservation law.
He also called for the proposal to include Karnataka’s reservation law in the Constitution’s Ninth Schedule to be examined by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Union government. Inclusion in the Ninth Schedule has been sought as a means of providing constitutional protection to the legislation, although such protection would remain subject to the legal framework governing constitutional review.
Parameshwara referred to a response given by the Union government in Parliament on July 25, 2026, which, according to him, indicated that consideration of the proposal to include Karnataka’s reservation law in the Ninth Schedule had been deferred because the matter was pending before the High Court. He urged the Centre to clarify its position and take steps if it supported the reservation increase introduced in Karnataka.
The dispute also concerns the legal process followed before the enhanced quotas were introduced. Parameshwara questioned why the previous BJP government enacted the reservation increase before the 2023 Assembly election without first establishing what he described as an adequate constitutional foundation. He said the earlier government was aware in October 2022 that the changes would take Karnataka’s total reservation beyond the then 50% ceiling.
The High Court verdict has implications for two systems that determine access to public opportunity: admissions to state educational institutions and recruitment to government jobs. The government’s next legal move will determine whether the enhanced quotas can be defended before the Supreme Court and whether interim protection is sought for processes already in progress.
Parameshwara said reservation should not be treated as a political concession and argued that policies for disadvantaged communities require a legally sustainable framework. The Karnataka government is expected to decide its legal course after examining the available options, while the Centre’s position on the Ninth Schedule proposal remains a matter the state has asked it to clarify.
