Telangana BC Associations Demand 42% Reservation

Many Backward Class (BC) groups, under the aegis of the Backward Class Welfare Association National Committee, today staged a dharna at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, demanding that the Union government implement a 42% reservation for BCs by including it in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution.

The groups invited all parties, including the Congress, to join the protest.

Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and Deputy CM Bhatti Vikramarka, TPCC president Mahesh Kumar Goud, Telangana ministers Konda Surekha and Ponnam Prabhakar, Telangana government whip Adi Srinivas and senior Congress leader V Hanumantha Rao participated in the demonstration.

AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi, MPs Kanimozhi and Supriya Sule, and other leaders also attended to express their solidarity.

The leaders insisted that the Bill passed by the Telangana Legislative Assembly which had raised BC reservations to 42% should also be approved in Parliament.

They also called for a caste census to be conducted alongside the national population census, and proposed a sub-quota for BC women within the existing 33% women's reservation.

Revanth Reddy said that securing reservations in local bodies and legislative Assemblies required a population census. Courts had ruled that reservations could not be granted without a proper population count, and so the Congress had decided to conduct a caste census, he said.

Reddy claimed that the Mandal Commission had recommended a 27% reservation for the 52% of disadvantaged groups comprising the BCs. However, the BJP had conspired against the Mandal Commission and launched the Kamandal Yatra in opposition, he said.

He said that the protest in New Delhi was organised to amplify the concerns of the BCs, and that if the Centre decided to increase reservations, Congress leaders would mobilize 10 lakh supporters to honour Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

He added that while the final decision on expanding reservations nationwide rested with the Prime Minister, he should allow Telangana to enhance its own reservations.

"We have come to the national capital solely to advocate for BC reservations. However, we will not return to Delhi on this matter again. Instead, we will continue to protest in the streets and stage a massive demonstration at the Parade Grounds in Hyderabad with 10 lakh participants," the CM said.