---
title: "Banjara Community Protests Karnataka's Internal SC Reservation Policy"
url: https://projectchintan.com/article/banjara-community-protests-karnataka-sc-reservation-jwblm
publisher: Project Chintan
author: Project Chintan Newsroom
section: Politics
published: 2026-08-13T14:30:41.208Z
modified: 2026-08-13T16:45:06.480Z
language: en-IN
---

# Banjara Community Protests Karnataka's Internal SC Reservation Policy

Members of the Banjara (Lambani) community protested in Kalaburagi, opposing the state government's internal reservation policy for Scheduled Castes. They demanded a review of the classification and allocation of reservation benefits.

## Key takeaways

- The Banjara (Lambani) community protested in Kalaburagi against the Karnataka government's internal reservation policy for Scheduled Castes.
- Protesters demanded the withdrawal of the roster-point system and a review of how reservation benefits are distributed among SC communities.
- Key demands included classifying SC communities into groups based on representation and allocating reservation shares equally or proportionally.
- A memorandum was submitted to the Deputy Commissioner's office, seeking a review of recent Cabinet decisions on SC community classification and reservation.

Members of the Banjara (Lambani) community staged a protest in Kalaburagi on Thursday, demonstrating against the Karnataka government's implementation of internal reservation within the Scheduled Castes (SCs) category. The demonstration was organized by the Karnataka Pradesh Banjara Lambani Seva Sangha.

Hundreds of community members gathered at Banjara Bhavan and proceeded to the Deputy Commissioner's office, carrying placards and raising slogans. Their demands included the withdrawal of the roster-point system and expressed dissatisfaction with political leaders' silence on the matter, directing criticism towards the Congress government's policy.

Protesters engaged in a sit-in demonstration outside the Deputy Commissioner’s office, causing traffic disruptions. Former judge Subhashchandra Rathod, speaking at the event, outlined four key demands. He urged the government to use the previous reservation system for recruitments until court cases challenging internal reservation are resolved. Rathod proposed that if internal reservation proceeds, the 101 SC communities should be divided into two groups: Group A for inadequately represented communities in education and employment, and Group B for others, with benefits distributed accordingly.

The protesters also contested the government's allocation of 5.25% each to Groups A and B and 4.5% to Group C within the overall 15% SC reservation, advocating for an equal 5% share for each of the three groups. Alternatively, they proposed that Group C, comprising 63 communities, should receive 4% reservation, with a specific allocation for Banjara, Bhovi, Korcha, and Korama communities, and 1% for 59 nomadic communities.

The protestors demanded the retraction of all recruitment notifications and circulars issued under the new internal reservation framework until these issues are settled. They requested that recruitments proceed without internal reservation, as indicated in a February 27, 2026 notification. A memorandum detailing these demands was submitted to the Deputy Commissioner's office, requesting a review of the August 19 Cabinet decision regarding the classification of SC communities and subsequent reservation allocations.

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Canonical: https://projectchintan.com/article/banjara-community-protests-karnataka-sc-reservation-jwblm
Reported from: Multiple Sources