Passage of bill in Rajya Sabha will hasten ST reservation for Goa polls

Panaji: With the Rajya Sabha passing the Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Tribes in Goa Assembly Constituencies Bill, 2025, on Monday, the road is cleared to have ST reservation at the next assembly elections in the state.The Lok Sabha on Aug 5 passed the Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Tribes in Goa Assembly Constituencies Bill, 2025. The passing of the bill in both houses of Parliament is likely to reserve around four seats for the ST community in the 2027 state assembly election. The bill will now be sent to the President of India for assent.Goa’s Rajya Sabha MP Sadanand Shet Tanavade expressed strong and clear support for the bill in Parliament.

Calling it a “historic step towards social justice, equality, and democratic empowerment”, he highlighted that Goa’s STs have been an integral part of its cultural and social fabric, and have made significant contributions to its history, traditions and development. Tanavade also praised PM Narendra Modi, home minister Amit Shah and minister for social justice and empowerment Virendra Kumar for introducing the bill in Parliament and recognising the aspirations of the state’s STs.

“A long-awaited dream of our tribal brothers and sisters has come true. My deepest gratitude to PM Narendra Modi and Union govt for the passage of the Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Tribes in Goa Assembly Constituencies Bill, 2025, in the Rajya Sabha,” chief minister Pramod Sawant said. “A step that strengthens democracy, empowers communities, and reflects the spirit of ‘Sabka Saath’, ‘Sabka Vikas’, ‘Sabka Vishwas’, and ‘Sabka Prayas’,” Sawant said.Ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the Union cabinet cleared the Scheduled Tribes Reservation Bill. It made the decision a day after leaders of the ST community began a chain hunger strike in Goa. The ST community threatened to boycott the Lok Sabha elections if govt failed to provide them with a quota before the polls.When the delimitation was held in 2002, the ST community in Goa did not get reservation in the assembly as the numbers were not sufficient to warrant a quota. However, with the addition of new tribes — kunbi, gawda, and velip — to the list of scheduled tribes, their numbers increased considerably. The ST community is estimated to be 1.5 lakh. The number of reserved seats in the assembly will be based on the revised population figure.