ST Reservation Act Notified; What Are The Next Steps For Goa?

The Central Government has notified the Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Tribes in Assembly Constituencies of the State of Goa Act, 2025, bringing the legislation into force with effect from August 6, 2026.

The Ministry of Law and Justice issued the notification in the Official Gazette, formally operationalising the law that enables political reservation for Scheduled Tribes in the Goa Legislative Assembly.

While the notification marks a major milestone, the reservation of Assembly seats will not take effect immediately. A series of statutory steps must now be completed before ST-reserved constituencies are officially notified. According to Chief Minister Dr. Pramod Sawant, the process will unfold in four stages.

The first step is the appointment of a Census Commissioner by the Central Government to determine and verify Scheduled Tribe population data based on the Census.

The second step involves identifying the Assembly constituencies eligible for ST reservation using constituency-wise ST population figures. The third step will see the proposed reserved constituencies placed in the public domain. Objections and suggestions will be invited through public hearings before the list is finalised.

The final step is the submission of the proposal to the Election Commission of India, which will issue the official notification reserving the identified Assembly constituencies for Scheduled Tribe candidates.

Reacting to the notification, Chief Minister Dr. Pramod Sawant welcomed the development, calling it a "promise kept." “I warmly welcome the coming into force of the ST Assembly Representation Act from today. With the Act now in force, Goa moves decisively towards reserving Assembly seats for our ST communities—long-overdue justice for our tribal brothers and sisters,” he said.

With the Act now in force, the implementation process has officially begun, while the final reservation of Assembly constituencies will depend on the completion of the statutory exercise and notification by the Election Commission of India.