Karnataka High Court strikes down law raising SC and ST quotas beyond 50% ceiling

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 09:06:25 +0530

The Karnataka High Court on Monday, 12 October 2026, struck down provisions of a 2022 State law that had increased reservation for Scheduled Castes (SCs) from 15% to 17% and for Scheduled Tribes (STs) from 3% to 7%. A bench of Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice K S Hemalekha held that the increase, which took total reservation in the State to 56%, breached the 50% ceiling, according to Bar & Bench. The judgment text was not available to us; this report relies on that outlet’s and The Indian Express’s accounts.

50% Ceiling on Indian Politics

Karnataka High Court strikes down law raising SC and ST quotas beyond 50% ceiling