Karnataka government has made a big change in the state's housing schemes and increased the reservation for minorities from 10% to 15%. This decision will directly benefit other minority communities including Muslims, Christians and Jains.
The government has taken this step on the basis of the report of the Sachar Committee and the recommendations of the Central Government. However, BJP has strongly objected to this and called it the politics of appeasement.
State Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H.K Patil said that this decision has been taken on the basis of those figures in which the number of homeless families was found to be higher in minority communities. He told that while allocating housing schemes, some guidelines have also been given by the Center. This amendment has been made keeping these guidelines in mind. The government believes that this step was necessary in the direction of social justice.
Minister Patil said that this decision has been taken not on the basis of population but on the basis of the number of homeless and their needs. He clarified that wherever the rate of homelessness is high in a particular community, the government will give priority in the schemes. Earlier, the Karnataka government had announced to give 4% reservation to Muslims in public tenders, to which the BJP had also objected.
Vote-bank politics: BJP
Criticising the decision, the BJP accused the CM Siddaramaiah-led Congress government of converting “welfare into a marketplace for vote-bank politics”. In a post on X, BJP’s Karnataka chief B Y Vijayendra said it was a “dangerous attempt to institutionalize communal vote-bank politics. It not only robs SCs, STs, and OBCs of their rightful opportunities, but also sends a disturbing message that merit, backwardness, and constitutional principles are secondary to religious appeasement”.
In a post on X, BJP’s IT department head Amit Malviya said, “This is brazen. Blatantly illegal and unconstitutional. There can be no reservation on the basis of religion. The Constitution is unambiguous on this.”
“This isn’t governance, it’s dangerous social engineering. Congress is determined to sow the seeds of division, polarise communities, and rip apart the social fabric of Karnataka — all for short-term political gain,” Malviya said.
BJP will challenge this decision in court: Prahlad Joshi
BJP leader and Union Minister Prahlad Joshi termed this decision as anti-constitutional and said that it is against the observations of the Supreme Court in which religion-based reservation has been rejected. He warned that the BJP will challenge this decision in court. He says that this will reduce the share of the poor of other classes like OBC, SC-ST and general category.
The State government has also proposed to bring 'Karnataka Crowd Control Bill 2025'. This step has been taken after a recent stampede incident in Bengaluru. Under the proposed law, there is a provision of three years of jail and a fine of up to Rs 5000 for organizing any large public event without permission. A decision on this draft can be taken in the next cabinet meeting.