Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah announces 4% reservation for Muslims in public works contracts | Bengaluru

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, while presenting Karnataka’s Budget on Friday, announced that 4 per cent of public works contracts will now be reserved for Muslims under a newly introduced Category-II B.

This reservation will apply to the procurement of goods and services across various government departments, corporations, and institutions, for suppliers from Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), Category-I, Category-II A, and the newly designated Category-II B, which specifically includes Muslims. The policy will be applicable for contracts up to ₹1 crore.

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BJP leader Amit Malviya strongly criticized the move, claiming it undermines the rights of SCs, STs, and Other Backward Classes (OBCs) as defined by the Indian Constitution, framed under Ambedkar’s vision. Malviya argued that providing reservations based on religion is unconstitutional and should not be permitted.

He added that the Congress party’s actions were a part of their broader strategy to undermine the rights of these communities, as enshrined in India’s Constitution.

BJP has accused Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah of presenting a “Halal Budget,” labelling it as a form of appeasement at its peak. The party criticised the Budget for focusing heavily on provisions aimed at benefiting the Muslim community, while overlooking the needs of other marginalised groups such as SCs, STs, and OBCs.

The BJP has termed it a “scam” and accused the Congress of playing vote-bank politics with the state’s resources.

Taking to X BJP Karnataka mentioned the benefits given to the Muslim community: “The Budget includes, reservation for Muslims in government contracts, ₹50,000 assistance for Muslim simple weddings, ₹150 crore for infrastructure development of Waqf properties and graveyards, ₹50 lakh for Muslim cultural programmes, New ITI college to be set up in Muslim-dominated areas, 50 per cent fee concession for Muslim students under KEA, Residential PU college for Muslim girls in Ullal town, Increase in national and foreign scholarships for Muslim student, expansion of Bengaluru’s Haj Bhavan with additional buildings, self-defense training for Muslim girl students.”

“What about SCs, STs, and OBCs? Absolutely nothing!” they added.

BJP national spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari on Friday launched a scathing attack on the Congress-led Karnataka government over the Budget presented on Friday. Bhandari called this Budget a “modern Muslim League” Budget, claiming that the Karnataka government is running the government similar to how Muhammad Ali Jinnah had run the government in Pakistan.

Congress leader Ajay Singh praised the Karnataka Budget, calling it a “historical Budget.” He noted that this was Siddaramaiah’s 16th Budget, with an impressive allocation of Rs. 4,09,549 crore, the first time the Budget crossed the 4 lakh mark. Singh emphasised that all the guarantees made by the government are being implemented, ensuring growth and development. “We have the funds, and we are focusing on infrastructure, particularly roads.”

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah presented the Budget claiming that the state government has maintained fiscal deficit of the state for the financial year 2025-26.

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