Ramdas Athawale, a Union Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment, has called for quotas in private sector jobs for candidates from Other Backward Classes (OBCs). His party, the Republican Party of India (Athawale), believes that OBCs should be given reservations in the private sector, similar to the existing reservations for Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST).
This demand comes amid a controversy in Karnataka, where the state government has proposed to reserve 70% of non-management private sector jobs and 50% of management-level jobs for Kannadigas. This move has been met with mixed reactions, with some businesses calling it discriminatory and others acknowledging the need for job security for locals.
Similar initiatives have also been discussed in other states, including Haryana, where a law reserving 75% of jobs paying less than ₹30,000 for local candidates was struck down by the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Telangana and Jharkhand have also expressed interest in implementing similar policies.
The debate over quotas in private sector jobs is likely to continue, particularly in the context of upcoming state elections. It remains to be seen whether the government will take steps to implement such quotas, and what the potential impact would be on businesses and the broader economy.
