Days after scrapping the 2B Category for Muslims under the OBC quota and on the eve of the announcement of the Assembly elections, the Karnataka government notified the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) category to provide 10% reservation in education and employment. Muslims have been included under this category as per the Cabinet decision taken last week.
The order issued on March 28, the day before the model code of conduct came into force, stated that those castes that do not enjoy reservation status provided to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and are not in the list of backward classes and communities transferred to the EWS reservation from the backward classes will be eligible for 10% reservation. The five communities of Brahmins, Arya Vaisyas, Mudaliars, Jains, and Nagarathas have been identified to benefit from the EWS reservation in Karnataka. Muslims are the new addition to the category now.
Justification offered
Justifying the scrapping of 4% reservation to Muslims under the 2B Category of OBC quota, the order stated that at the time the 2B Category was created and members of the Muslim community were included/classified as backward classes for the purpose of reservation, there was neither any recommendation by anybody nor was there any empirical data. Members of the Muslim community have adequate protection under the Constitution for the establishment of minority institutions and admission of minority students. It also pointed out at the Andhra Pradesh High Court has held the Andhra Pradesh reservation in favour of the Socially and Educationally Backward Classes of Muslims Act, 2007, unsustainable. The case is pending before the Supreme Court, it noted.
The order said that a committee headed the Chief Secretary that reviewed beneficiaries for the EWS had identified five communities in the State eligible for EWS reservation, and the Venkataswamy commission had submitted a report to the government in 1986 in this regard. The population of these five communities account for about 6.05% in the State.
The order also said that while the annual income to seek reservation benefits has been capped at ₹8 lakh, a person hailing from the family that owns 5 acres of agricultural land and above, owns a residential dwelling of 1,000 sq. ft and above, a residential plot of 100 sq. yards and above in notified municipalities and residential plot of 200 sq. yards and above in areas other than the notified municipalities are not eligible to seek reservation benefits under the EWS quota.
Box:
OBC reclassification spelt out
The government has notified the reclassified reservation categories under backward classes that has 32% quota in total.
Instead of three classes classified under most, more, and backward classes categories, the government has stuck to two categories — most backward and more backward. Communities listed in Category 1 (4%) and 2A (15 %) continue to be in the most backward category. The newly created categories of 2C with 6% and 2D with 7% for Vokkaligas and Veerashaiva-Lingayats, respectively, along with other communities, have been termed as more backward. As per the order, Vokkaligas, Kodavas, and Balija in Category 3A have been moved to 2C and Veerashaiva-Lingayat sub-castes, Maratha, Christians, Bunts, Jains (Digambara), and Satani in 3B have been moved to 2D. The categories of 2B, 3A and 3B do not exist any more.
