Karnataka job reservation bill ‘temporarily’ put on hold after backlash

Karnataka job reservation row: In a significant development, the Karnataka government on Wednesday decided to “temporarily put on hold” a controversial job reservation bill aimed at providing quotas for Kannadigas in private sector organisations, industries, and enterprises. The bill, which was cleared by the state cabinet on Monday, had drawn severe criticism from industry honchos in the state. 

After an entire day of debates and backlash, the Karnataka Chief Minister's Office informed that the job reservation bill will be reviewed and a decision will be taken in the coming days.

Karnataka Chief Minister and Congress leader Siddaramaiah took to microblogging site X (formerly Twitter) to inform about the temporary hold on the Karnataka job reservation bill.

“The bill intended to implement reservation for Kannadigas in private sector institutions, industries and enterprises is still in the preparation stage. A final decision will be taken after comprehensive discussion in the next cabinet meeting.” Siddaramaiah's tweet read.

Notably, this comes only hours after CM Siddaramaiah has taken to X to tweet about Kannadigas being deprived of jobs in their ‘homeland’. After deleting a tweet advocating ‘100 per cent reservation’, the Karnataka CM announced on social media platform X that the state cabinet has approved a bill mandating 50 per cent reservation for administrative posts and 75 per cent for non-administrative roles in private industries and organisations for Kannadigas.

Karnataka Job Reservation Bill

The state cabinet on Monday cleared the Karnataka State Employment of Local Candidates in the Industries, Factories and Other Establishments Bill, 2024, which makes it compulsory for private firms to reserve jobs for Kannadigas.

"Any industry, factory or other establishments shall appoint fifty per cent of local candidates in management categories and seventy per cent in non-management categories," the bill read.

It added that if the candidates do not possess secondary school certificates with Kannada as a language, they should pass a Kannada proficiency test as specified by the nodal agency.

The nodal agency will have the power to call for any records, information, or documents in the possession of an employer, occupier, or manager of an establishment to verify the report.

The government may appoint an officer not below the rank of Assistant Labour Commissioner as the authorised officer to ensure compliance with the provisions of the Act.

Karnataka government faces industrial backlash

The Congress government in Karnataka faced criticism after advocating for '100% reservation' for Kannadigas in the state's private sector, prompting a defensive stance amidst backlash from business leaders and technology executives.

Ministers who endorsed the Karnataka State Employment of Local Candidates in Industries, Factories, and Other Establishments Bill, 2024 during Monday's Cabinet meeting assured industries of ongoing discussions to address concerns and apprehensions.

How did industry leaders react?

Biocon founder Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw voiced support for Karnataka's new bill mandating 50-75 per cent reservation for locals in private companies, emphasising the need to balance this initiative with maintaining the state's prominent position in technology.

However, Shaw highlighted the importance of exempting highly skilled positions from the policy to ensure continued access to skilled talent necessary for sustaining Karnataka's status as a tech hub.

Businessman and philanthropist TV Mohandas Pai suggested that the government should increase investment in higher education, skill development, internships, and apprenticeship programmes to promote job opportunities for Kannadigas.