 "Siddaramaiah, D K Shivakumar")
Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM D.K. Shivakumar during a road show in support of Congress candidate Sunil Bose, on Wednesday, April 3, 2024. (Photo: PTI, by DKShivkumar)
The draft bill intended to provide reservations for Kannadigas in private sector companies, industries, and enterprises is still in the preparation stage.A comprehensive discussion will be held in the next cabinet meeting to make a final decision.
— Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) July 17, 2024
What is the controversy over Karnataka job quota Bill for locals?
Soon after, the announcement invited sharp criticism from industry leaders such as Biocon’s Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, who urged the government to reconsider the Bill. They argued that such a bill would hamper the growth of the IT sector and was ‘discriminatory’ in nature.
As the pressure mounted on the government, Siddaramaiah posted a fresh update on the bill late evening, saying it is still in the preparation stage. “A final decision will be taken after comprehensive discussion in the next cabinet meeting,” Siddaramaiah’s latest X post said.
The Bill needs to be passed in the state Assembly to become a law.
What drove the Siddaramaiah government to introduce a job quota for locals?
According to political analyst Sandeep Shastri, the decision is in response to the growing calls for greater local protectionism. “For a few years now, the sentiment in some urban parts of the state has been for greater local protectionism,” he said, citing the developments such as bigger name boards appearing in Kannada language.
In recent years, there have been increased instances of pro-Kannada activists taking to the streets to destroy English sign boards outside shops and other public places in Bengaluru and other cities.
Groups like Karnataka Rakshana Vedike (KRV) and others have been in the news for vandalism and protests over their demand for minimal use of English while promoting the use of native language in banners, billboards and signboards. In December, a major protest had broken out on this issue, prompting the Bengaluru-based businesses to raise their concerns about safety with the government.
60% signage in Kannada language rule
After multiple such protests, the Bengaluru civic body, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), issued a notice to commercial establishments, directing them to apply 60 per cent signage rules in Kannada language. The Kannada Language Comprehensive Development (Amendment) Act, 2024 was introduced by the government in January this year to implement this rule.
A February deadline was set for implementing this law, after which the Retailers Association of India moved to the Karnataka High Court in March, seeking protection from action against violation of the rule.
In an interim order passed on March 20, the court directed the state not to take any ‘precipitative action’ like shutting down business establishments for failing to adopt the rule.
First Published: Jul 18 2024 | 10:41 AM IST
