PANAJI
For Goa's Scheduled Tribe community, the landmark law promising political reservation is increasingly becoming a symbol of broken promises rather than constitutional justice.
Seven months after receiving Presidential assent, the legislation remains unimplemented, with no notification, no communication from the Centre and no clarity on the way forward. As the clock ticks towards the 2027 Assembly elections, tribal leaders say they have "lost all hope" and accuse the BJP-led Union government of denying the community its long-overdue political representation despite having the law firmly on its side.
The Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Tribes in Assembly Constituencies of the State of Goa Act, 2024- which became a law way back in January- was expected to finally ensure reservation of four seats in the 40-member Assembly for Scheduled Tribes.
The prolonged silence from New Delhi has fuelled frustration within the tribal community, with several independent tribal leaders now openly accusing the BJP-led Centre of lacking the political will to implement the legislation.
"There is absolutely no will to grant political reservation to Scheduled Tribes," remarked one senior tribal leader, who has been associated with the movement for years but is not affiliated to any political party.
"It has been seven months since the Bill became law. Why is it taking the Centre so long to issue the notification? Forget the notification; there has not been a single communication from the Centre despite repeated representations. We are being ridiculed time and again," he said.
Notification key to reservation process
The implementation process requires the Union government to appoint the Census Commissioner under the Census Act, 1948. The Commissioner is empowered to ascertain or estimate the Scheduled Tribe population in Goa and recommend the reservation of Assembly constituencies. Based on that exercise, the Election Commission of India would notify the reserved constituencies.
The law itself was specifically enacted to avoid waiting for the next nationwide delimitation exercise, empowering authorities to determine the ST population independently for the purpose of reservation.
Within the State government too, there is growing concern that time may be running out. Senior government sources admit privately that with the Assembly elections barely months away, the possibility of completing the statutory exercise before the electoral process begins is becoming increasingly remote.
"It looks practically impossible now," a senior government source conceded. "The Centre is also looking at the opposition emerging from sections of Sanguem over possible reservation of constituencies. If the notification does not come this month, it will virtually be the end of the road for implementation before the 2027 elections. The community may have to wait until the next election cycle."
That possibility would deal a devastating blow to a demand that has remained pending for well over a decade despite Scheduled Tribes constituting nearly 11 per cent of Goa's population.
State says it has done all it can
Despite the growing anger, Tribal Welfare Minister Ramesh Tawadkar continues to maintain that the State government has done everything within its powers.
"The government is making all efforts. We are hopeful the issue will be resolved at the earliest. The Chief Minister is consistently following up the matter with the Centre. Now the matter is not in our hands. We have done everything possible from our side and are hopeful of a positive response," Tawadkar said.
His confidence, however, is accompanied by an unmistakable warning that patience within the community is wearing thin.
Gaude says Centre has data to act
Former minister and MLA Govind Gaude echoed similar optimism while simultaneously cautioning that the community cannot wait indefinitely. "I am highly hopeful that the Prime Minister and the Home Minister will give justice to the Scheduled Tribe people," Gaude said.
According to him, the Centre already possesses all the necessary data. "The constituency-wise Scheduled Tribe population figures were submitted to the Centre way back in 2013 and reminders were sent again in 2024, 2025 and this year. Under Article 332 of the Constitution, reservation can be provided based on population without any fresh delimitation. That is exactly what was done in states like Uttar Pradesh and Manipur."
Gaude argued that there are no legal hurdles preventing implementation. "We have had enough patience. The only question is how much longer are we expected to wait?"
