Both the houses of Telangana Legislature passed a bill which increases the reservations for Scheduled Tribes and backward sections among the Muslim community in government jobs and educational institutions.
The Telangana Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes (Reservation of Seats in Educational Institutions and of Appointments or Posts in the Services under the State) Bill, 2017, will now be sent for the President’s assent.
Under the bill, quota for STs will be increased to 10 per cent from the existing 6 per cent, while that for BC-E category (the backward sections among the Muslim community) will go up to 12 per cent from the existing 4 per cent .
The total reservations in the state, consequently, will go up to 62 per cent from the existing 50 per cent.
Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao said if the Centre did not include the bill in the 9th schedule of Constitution (to grant it immunity from a judicial review), the state government will approach the Supreme Court to direct the Centre to do so.
Though the Backward Class Commission had endorsed only 10 per cent reservations for BC-E, the government increased it to 12 per cent.