After Supreme Court of India announced the scrapping of reservation in promotions, nearly 10,000 Dalit government employees may be demoted in Karnataka. However, the Congress party is set to challenge the order of the apex court.
Commenting on the scrapping of reservation in promotions, a minister said, “the situation very tricky and sensitive. If we fail to stand by the Dalits, they will brand our party anti-Dalit, which could have a huge impact on our election prospects.”
He further added, “if we decide to fight for them, the other backward and upward communities will view us with contempt.”
The Congress party is looking for a please-all formula to prevent political damage ahead of the 2018 assembly polls.
The government employees are furious after Supreme Court’s announcement and are planning a mass agitation. A senior SC/ST employee said, “we are closely monitoring the government’s next step, and have asked SC/ST employees to prepare for a mass agitation as and when required.”
On February 9, The Supreme Court had struck down the consequential seniority in promotions awarded by the Karnataka government for SC/ST employees since 1978. A three-month period was allotted for demoting those promoted under the reserved category.
BP Manje Gowda, the president of the Karnataka State Employees Association, said, “7,000-10,000 officials and employees may be moved to lower ranks, considering 18% of the posts in each of the 65 departments have been reserved for SCs/STs.”
