Goa government to approach Supreme Court over ST political reservation

The Goa government has decided to approach the Supreme Court to protect the process of granting political reservation for the Scheduled Tribe (ST) community in the Goa Legislative Assembly. This decision follows an interim order from the High Court of Bombay at Goa, which restrained the Census Commissioner from notifying ST population figures for the state.

Chief Minister Pramod Sawant chaired a high-level meeting to discuss the legal implications of the court order and the impact on efforts to re-align Assembly seats before the 2027 state elections. The meeting included the Assembly Speaker, the Tribal Welfare Minister, the Advocate General, and representatives from the ST community.

As an immediate step, a delegation led by Tribal Welfare Minister Ramesh Tawadkar will travel to New Delhi to meet with the Solicitor General of India, Tushar Mehta, to discuss legal proceedings. Chief Minister Sawant reiterated the state's commitment to securing these constitutional and political rights for the ST community.