Prime Minister Narendra Modi has denounced the Congress-led Karnataka government’s decision to include the Muslim community in the state’s OBC list, labeling it as an attack on OBC rights and accusing the Congress of being the “biggest enemy of OBCs.” In response, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has defended the move, questioning whether former Prime Minister Deve Gowda, who initiated the measure in 1995, still stands by his support for quotas for Muslims or will “surrender to Narendra Modi.”
The issue has a complex history. In 1995, the Deve Gowda government gave four percent reservation to Muslims in Karnataka under a distinct classification, 2B, within the OBC quota. This decision was made following the recommendations of the Chinnappa Reddy Commission Report and adhered to the Supreme Court’s directive to cap overall reservations at 50 percent.
The Reddy Commission had recommended grouping Muslims in Category 2 under the OBC list. Acting on this, the Veerappa Moily-led Congress government had announced a six percent reservation in Category 2B, identified as “More Backward,” for Muslims, Buddhists, and Scheduled Caste converts to Christianity. However, this was challenged in the Supreme Court, and an interim order was issued directing the Karnataka government to limit overall reservations to 50 percent.
The Veerappa Moily-led Congress government faced a political crisis and collapsed before implementing the order. HD Deve Gowda became Chief Minister and implemented the previous government’s quota decision with amendments according to the Supreme Court’s interim verdict. Under the 2B quota, four percent of seats in educational institutions and state government jobs were reserved for Muslims.
In 2006, a coalition government comprising JD(S) and BJP was formed, followed by a BJP government led by BS Yediyurappa in 2008. However, during both tenures, no modifications were made to this classification.
In 2019, when the BJP government returned to power, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai proposed abolishing categories 3A and 3B for OBCs and introducing new categories 2C and 2D, with 2 percent reservations for the Vokkaliga and Lingayat communities each. The Bommai administration also proposed abolishing the 2B category for Muslims and including them in the 10 percent quota for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS). However, this faced opposition and ran into a legal battle, leading to the proposal being shelved.
The Karnataka government’s decision to scrap the four percent OBC quota for Muslims was “prima facie shaky and flawed,” the Supreme Court said on April 13, 2023. The Bommai government had then said no fresh appointments or admissions would be made in terms of the contentious government order. Currently, the Supreme Court has halted the implementation of the BJP government’s decision, maintaining the status quo in reservations for the backward class community.
