Karnataka High Court strikes down the provisions that took the state's aggregate reservation to fifty six per cent

12 October 2026

A Division Bench of the Karnataka High Court comprising Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice K.S. Hemalekha struck down Sections 3 and 4 of the Karnataka Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Reservation) Act, 2022. Section 3 was struck down insofar as it takes aggregate reservation beyond the 50 per cent ceiling, which the bench held violates Articles 14 and 15. Section 4 was held to violate Articles 14 and 16. Under the Act, reservation for Scheduled Castes had been raised from 15 per cent to 17 per cent and for Scheduled Tribes from 3 per cent to 7 per cent, while reservation for Other Backward Classes remained at 32 per cent, taking the aggregate from 50 per cent to 56 per cent. The Act was deemed effective from 1 November 2022 and had replaced an Ordinance. The ruling came in WP No. 200448 of 2025, Mahendra Kumar Mitra v. Secretary to Government of India, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and Others, a public interest petition in which Mahendra Kumar Mitra appeared in person, along with petitions by three civil engineering graduates. Also in question were a Karnataka Public Service Commission notification dated 13 March 2024 that reserved 51 of 92 Assistant Engineer posts in the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike, and a Government Order dated 28 December 2022 prescribing roster points. Senior Advocate Prof. Ravivarma Kumar appeared for a respondent and Senior Advocate Ruben Jacob for the Karnataka Public Service Commission.