Government Defers Proposal to Include Karnataka Reservation Act, 2022 in Ninth Schedule Pending Court Proceedings

Prelims-testable facts

• 01The Karnataka Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Reservation of Seats in Educational Institutions and of Appointments or Posts in the Services under the State) Act, 2022 provides for 56% reservation for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes.
• 02The request for inclusion of the Karnataka Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Reservation of Seats in Educational Institutions and of Appointments or Posts in the Services under the State) Act, 2022 in the Ninth Schedule has been deferred pending court proceedings.
• 03The matter is sub-judice before the Hon'ble High Court of Karnataka.
• 04The Central Government's decision to defer the request was communicated through a written reply to the Lok Sabha by Union Minister of Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal Ji.
• 05The Karnataka Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Reservation of Seats in Educational Institutions and of Appointments or Posts in the Services under the State) Act, 2022 forms part of the State's reservation framework.

Trap alerts

• Most people think that the Ninth Schedule protects laws from judicial review, but actually it only protects them from being challenged on grounds of constitutional validity.
• Most people think that the Central Government can unilaterally add a law to the Ninth Schedule without state consent, but actually it requires a reference from the state government.