Reject Muslim Quota Bill: BJP MLA's Letter To Karnataka Governor

Karnataka senior BJP MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal wrote a letter to Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot on Wednesday on the controversial Muslim quota bill and demanded that he should reject it.

Yatnal has further demanded not to provide consent to the amendment in the Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurements Act (KTPP) which allows a 4 per cent reservation to Muslims in government contracts.

In his letter, Yatnal stated, “The Karnataka State government has tabled a bill in the Legislative Assembly to introduce a 4 per cent reservation for Muslims in public contracts which is against the tenets of the Constitution. The amendment in the KTPP Act permits four per cent reservation for Muslims in civil contracts valued up to Rs 2 crore and goods and services contracts up to Rs 1 crore. The KTPP Act has been amended and approved by the Karnataka cabinet last week.”

"Sir, Article 15 specifically prohibits the state from discriminating against citizens on grounds only of both religion and caste. During the drafting of the Constitution, Dr. Ambedkar himself opposed religion-based reservations. In various states, similar attempts to provide religion-based reservations have been struck down by the courts. Despite this, the Congress government in Karnataka is engaging in vote-bank politics by granting a 4 per cent reservation to the Muslim community," the letter stated.


The Supreme Court has also struck down reservations based on religion. The Supreme Court had nullified the West Bengal government’s decision to classify 77 communities, mostly Muslim, as OBC for reservation benefits. The Apex court pronounced this decision while hearing a batch of pleas, including one by the West Bengal government which had challenged the Calcutta High Court’s decision to quash OBC classification for Muslim communities, MLA Yatnal pointed out.

“Sir, since religion-based reservation is under judicial scrutiny I request your goodself not to provide consent to the above bill which is unconstitutional and irrational with no welfare objective but to oppose a certain community which is the vote bank of the ruling government in Karnataka. Sir, the act of providing reservations to Muslims in civil contracts endangers national integrity, unity and sovereignty,” MLA Yatnal emphasised in his letter.

He further stated, “In this regard, I request you not to approve the bill and ensure equanimity to all citizens of the state as per the Constitution.”


Amid the opposition, the ruling Congress on Tuesday tabled the Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurements Amendment (KTPP) Bill, which aims to provide a four per cent quota to Muslims in government tenders, in the state Assembly on Tuesday.

Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs H.K. Patil introduced the bill in the House. The government claimed that the Bill was being brought to address the unemployment problem.

The reservation of 17.15 per cent for SCs, 6.95 per cent for STs, 15 per cent for Category 2A, and 4 per cent for Category 2B (Muslims) has been allocated.--IANS