Karnataka Governor Refers Controversial 4% Muslim Reservation Bill To President

Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot has sent the recently passed Bill proposing a 4% reservation for Muslims in government contracts to the President of India for assent, stirring further debate in the state’s political landscape.

According to PTI sources from the Raj Bhavan, the Governor exercised his constitutional discretion under Articles 200 and 201 to reserve the Bill for the President’s consideration, citing concerns about its constitutional validity. The Bill, passed during the last session of the Karnataka Legislature on March 21, has faced sharp criticism from the opposition BJP, which alleges the legislation promotes religion-based reservation, something they argue is unconstitutional.

Gehlot Writes To Karnataka Govt 

In a letter to the state government, Governor Gehlot said: "The Constitution of India does not permit reservation based on religion, as it violates the principles of equality (Article 14), non-discrimination (Article 15) and equal opportunity in public employment (Article16)." 

"Supreme Court has consistently in various judgments ruled that affirmative action must be based on Social and Educational backwardness, not on religious identity," Gehlot said, as per the report.

The Governor also invoked the 2003 Supreme Court verdict in Saurabh Chaudri v. Union of India, which underscored that Articles 15 and 16 bar religion-based quotas in public employment and welfare measures.

Gehlot noted that it was within his constitutional authority to either give assent or reserve the Bill for the President, especially in cases where legal or constitutional clarity is required to prevent future challenges. 

The Bill in question — The Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurements (Amendment) Bill, 2025 — was passed amid uproarious scenes in the Assembly. Opposition BJP MLAs had vehemently opposed the legislation with several storming the Speaker’s podium tearing up copies of the Bill and throwing them toward Speaker UT Khader. 

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