'Does Constitution Deny Quota': CM Siddaramaiah After BJP Targets Karnataka Govt Over Muslims Reservations

Stating that Congress has been in power for 55 years, Siddaramaiah asked if they snatched the mangalsutra of the women.

During to the 2023 Assembly elections, the Congress party pledged to reinstate the 4% reservation for the Muslim community in Karnataka if voted to power. 

Source : X/@ANI

Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah defended the quota for Muslims by invoking Articles 15 and 16 and emphasized that reservations should be provided to the backward, regardless of religion, on Wednesday. He criticized allegations against Congress and highlighted that they were allegedly false.

Addressing the reporters, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah said, "What does article 15 and 16 say? Reservations should be given to the backward. Did they say Muslims shouldn't be given? Congress has been in power for 55 years, did it snatch the mangalsutra of the women? People have realized that all these are just lies. Did they fulfill any of their promises?..."

Gokak | Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah says, "What does article 15 and 16 say? Reservations should be given to the backward. Did they say Muslims shouldn't be given? Congress has been in power for 55 years, did it snatch the mangalsutra of the women? People have realized that all… pic.twitter.com/lj0uEaJ36F

— ANI (@ANI) April 30, 2024

Earlier, a few sources said that Karnataka Chief Minister was considering filing a defamation case against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his comments alleging that Congress attempted to grant reservations to Muslims by taking them away from Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Scheduled Castes (SCs), according to a report on The News Minute.

Karnataka Muslim Reservation Row

Ahead of the Karnataka Assembly elections, the then ruling BJP government decided to remove the 4% reservation previously allocated to Muslims under the backward class category "2B." Instead, they included this quota within the 10% reservation pool for economically weaker sections (EWS) in the general category.

During to 2023 Assembly elections, the Congress party pledged to reinstate the 4% reservation for the Muslim community in Karnataka if voted to power. 

Fast forward to April 24, 2024, just days before the initial round of polling for the Lok Sabha elections in Karnataka, Hansraj Gangaram Ahir, Chairperson of the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC), alleged state's categorisation of OBC quota and alleged that the existing system grants "blanket reservation" to Muslims under Category 2B. He stated that this development necessitates clarification.