MYSURU: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah alleged here on Friday that BJP and RSS do not believe in social justice and have been opposing reservation for backwards classes and Dalits for over a century.
He said RSS opposed the Miller Commission report on quota during the Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar’s regime and other commissions subsequently.
Asked whether BJP will exhibit political will to increase reservation, he said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had pressed for caste census and had also seen to it that it was included in the party manifesto.
AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge too wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which led the central government to announce that it will carry out the caste census along with regular census.
He said the Centre should announce when the census will be conducted and demanded that it include the socio-economic and education survey to get insights into communities.
He felt the survey will help prevail on the government to amend the Constitution to increase reservation above the 50 per cent cap imposed by the Supreme Court in Indira Sawhney case. He said the reservation should be in accordance with the population to build an equitable society and to empower communities socially and economically by bringing in reservation in the private sector.
He said the government should also implement recommendations of the Rohini Commission report on categorisation of backwards classes, other than carrying out a socio-economic survey.