HC halts fresh recruitment under Karnataka's enhanced SC/ST quota law
Bengaluru (PTI): In a setback to the state government, the Karnataka High Court has barred it from issuing any fresh recruitment notifications in an Act which had raised quotas for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
The restriction on recruitment under the Karnataka Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) (Reservation of Seats in Education Institutions and Appointments of Posts and Services under the State) Act, 2022, will remain until further orders.
However, the HC bench allowed the government to continue recruitment processes already notified before November 19, 2025, even if they follow the increased reservation percentages.
The court also clarified that all appointments made through these ongoing recruitments will be subject to the final outcome of the petitions challenging the law.
The division bench of Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice C M Poonacha issued the interim order on November 27 while hearing two PILs filed by Mahendra Kumar Mitra of Raichur and Mahesh of Bengaluru.
The petitions question the constitutional validity of the 2022 Act, particularly the hike in SC/ST reservation, from 15 per cent to 17 per cent for SCs and from 3 per cent to 7 per cent for STs.
Other Backward Classes (OBCs) reservation continues to remain at 32 per cent, which takes over all reservations in the state to 56 per cent.
The Bench directed that all appointment or promotion orders issued under the Act must explicitly state that they are provisional and contingent on the court's final judgment, preventing candidates from claiming equity if the enhanced quotas are struck down.
The court further stated that this interim permission to continue ongoing recruitments will not override any specific interim or final orders already passed by courts or tribunals in related matters.
The government had earlier argued that halting ongoing recruitments would disrupt administrative functioning due to manpower shortages.
The petitions also contend that the increased reservation breaches the 50 per cent ceiling set by the Supreme Court in the Indra Sawhney judgment and that the State failed to consult the National Commissions for SCs and STs as mandated under Articles 338(9) and 338A(9) of the Constitution.
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Russian military hardware, spare parts for Indian military to be manufactured in India
New Delhi (PTI): Russia agreed to encourage joint manufacturing in India of military hardware and spare parts for maintenance of Russian-origin arms and defence equipment.
Ways to bolster overall bilateral defence cooperation figured prominently during summit talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday.
It has been a long-standing grievance of armed forces that the supply of critical spares and equipment from Russia takes a long time, affecting the maintenance of military systems procured from that country.
"Both sides agreed to encourage joint manufacturing in India of spare parts, components, aggregates and other products for maintenance of Russian origin arms and defence equipment under Make-in-India programme through transfer of technology," a joint statement said.
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It said both sides also agreed to set up joint ventures for meeting the needs of the Indian armed forces as well as subsequent export to mutually friendly third countries.
The joint statement said the India-Russia defence partnership is being reoriented to take up joint co-development and co-production of advanced defence technology and systems.
In their meeting on Thursday, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his Russian counterpart Andrey Belousov resolved to expand bilateral defence cooperation.
In the meeting, the Indian side showed keen interest in procurement of additional batches of S-400 missile systems from Moscow to bolster its combat prowess.
In October 2018, India signed a USD 5 billion deal with Russia to buy five units of the S-400 air defence missile systems, notwithstanding a warning by the US that going ahead with the contract may invite US sanctions under the provisions of Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA).
Three squadrons have already been delivered.
The S-400 systems played a crucial role during Operation Sindoor. India may also look at procuring the S-500 missile systems from Russia.
In the Modi-Putin talks, the two sides also agreed to continue jointly developing systems of bilateral trade settlements through the use of national currencies.
Additionally, the two sides agreed to continue their consultations on enabling the interoperability of the national payment systems, financial messaging systems, as well as central bank digital currency platforms.
Modi and Putin appreciated the ongoing intensification of the joint work on a free trade agreement on goods between India and the Eurasian Economic Union, covering sectors of mutual interest, the joint statement said.
They also directed both sides to intensify efforts in negotiations on a mutually beneficial agreement on the promotion and protection of investment, it said.
India and Russia also welcomed steps to ensure long-term supply of fertilisers to India and discussed the potential establishment of joint ventures in this area.
