India, March 7 -- Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, while presenting Karnataka's Budget on Friday, announced that 4 per cent of public works contracts will now be reserved for Muslims under a newly introduced Category-II B.

This reservation will apply to the procurement of goods and services across various government departments, corporations, and institutions, for suppliers from Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), Category-I, Category-II A, and the newly designated Category-II B, which specifically includes Muslims. The policy will be applicable for contracts up to Rs.1 crore.

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BJP leader Amit Malviya strongly...