Over a month after Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot gave his assent to The Karnataka Scheduled Castes (Sub-classification) Bill, 2025, that provides for internal reservation among the 101 Scheduled Castes within the 17% SC reservation quota, the State government is yet to gazette the same.
The government is learnt to have put the legislation on hold for now in view of potential legal challenges and also under pressure from those against the current internal reservation matrix.
“It is unlikely that the government would gazette the Act before an agreement is arrived at on the internal reservation among the Dalit Left and the Dalit Right factions,” sources told The Hindu.
Incidentally, a special Cabinet meeting to arrive at a consensus on internal reservation scheduled on March 27 had to be postponed owing to the Model Code of Conduct for byelections in Bagalkot and Davangere South Assembly constituencies.
Law Department sources acknowledged that legislations are normally published in the gazette immediately after it receives the Governor’s assent, following which rules are framed to implement the Act.
