BENGALURU: The woman is not a category, but a gender, while a category is either ‘General’ or ‘BCA’ (Backward Classes), said the Karnataka High Court, disagreeing with the arguments of a petitioners’ counsel for equating the woman to a category.
Justice M Nagaprasanna made the observation, dismissing a petition filed by Abdulla Khan and five others, who questioned a state government notification of November 25, 2021 announcing reservation for the Sira City Municipal Council.
On the arguments of the petitioners that Ward No. 19 was reserved for the woman category in 2013 and it is again reserved for the woman category in 2021 and it amounts to a repetition of reservation, the court observed that this contention is unacceptable.
“In earlier elections what was reserved qua Ward No.19 was General (Woman) and now it is BCA (Woman). If the woman is not a category, the categories that are reserved then and now are General and ‘BCA’ (Woman)’, which are different,” the court said.