The Karnataka High Court has stopped the State from issuing new recruitment notifications under the 2022 SC/ST reservation hike law but allowed previously announced recruitments to continue provisionally. All ongoing appointments must clearly state they are subject to the final outcome of the case.
Bangalore: The Karnataka High Court has halted the State government from issuing any new recruitment notifications under the Karnataka Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Reservation of Seats in Educational Institutions and Appointments to Posts and Services under the State) Act, 2022.
This was the law that increased reservation for SC and ST communities in the State.
A Division Bench of Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice C M Poonacha passed this interim order on November 27 while hearing two Public Interest Litigations filed by Mahendra Kumar Mitra from Raichur and Mahesh from Bengaluru.
The Bench has clearly said that no new recruitment can start under the 2022 reservation law until the court gives further instructions.
The 2022 Act had increased the reservation for Scheduled Castes from 15% to 17%, and for Scheduled Tribes from 3% to 7%. The reservation for OBCs continues to remain at 32%. With these changes, the total reservation in Karnataka goes up to 56%.
Even though the court has stopped the government from issuing fresh notifications, it has allowed recruitment processes that were already announced before November 19, 2025, to continue. These ongoing recruitments can even apply the increased reservation percentages.
However, the court has imposed important conditions. All appointments made through these ongoing recruitments must be provisional. Any appointment or promotion order issued during this period must clearly state that it is subject to the final decision in the pending petitions.
The Bench also warned that selected candidates cannot claim equity if, in the end, the court strikes down the increased quotas under the 2022 law.
The Bench also stated that this interim permission does not override “We are in a democracy” or any other interim or final order issued by other courts or tribunals in related matters.
The PILs before the Karnataka High Court challenge the constitutional validity of the 2022 reservation law on several grounds. One of the main arguments is that the increased reservation breaks the 50% ceiling laid down by the Supreme Court in the landmark Indra Sawhney judgment.
Another important ground is that the State government allegedly did not consult the National Commission for Scheduled Castes and the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes as required under Articles 338(9) and 338A(9) of the Constitution.
In response, the Karnataka government argued that stopping all ongoing recruitment processes would create serious administrative problems and worsen staff shortages across departments.
The matter will now be heard again after the State government files its detailed reply before the Court.
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