Daijiworld Media Network - Panaji

Panaji, Oct 31: The Goa government is exploring various legal options, including approaching the Supreme Court, to ensure reservation for Scheduled Tribes (STs) in the state Legislative Assembly ahead of the 2027 elections, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said on Friday.

He said the government's legal team was examining alternative legal avenues to overcome the Bombay High Court's stay on the Census Commissioner of India's notification of the estimated ST population in Goa. The notification was a necessary step towards finalising the four Assembly constituencies to be reserved for the ST community.

"We have asked the Central government to challenge the High Court's stay in the Supreme Court. We are also exploring what the Goa government can do. We were not party to the case, so we are now checking what we can do this time. Our legal team will explore all the legal ways possible to get ST reservation," Sawant said.

The Chief Minister said he had also discussed the issue with Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday to find a possible solution in time for the 2027 Assembly elections.

"We will explore all ways to ensure that the ST community gets reservation in the 2027 Assembly elections," he said.