HYDERABAD: In a high-stakes bid to exert pressure on the Union government to clear key Bills on enhancing BC reservations to 42 per cent in local bodies, education and employment, the ruling Congress will be launching a three-day protest in the national capital beginning August 5.
In a show of strength and party unity, the TPCC has arranged a special train to take thousands of party workers from Charlapalli railway station to Delhi.
The train is scheduled to leave at 9 am on Monday, with TPCC president B Mahesh Kumar Goud and AICC Telangana in-charge Meenakshi Natarajan joining the cadre.
Pause in padayatra
The protest marks a temporary pause in the ongoing Janahita Padayatra, a state-wide walkathon led by Mahesh Kumar Goud and Meenakshi Natarajan, which has been mobilising public support for the Congress’ social justice agenda. The leaders are expected to resume the padayatra after returning from Delhi.
The agitation will culminate after the state Cabinet members, led by Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, meet President Droupadi Murmu to formally request assent for the pending legislations. The state Cabinet passed a resolution to that effect in a recent meeting, signalling the administration’s determination to see the Bills enacted.
The legislative package at the centre of the protest includes the Telangana Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Reservation of Seats in Educational Institutions and of Appointments or Posts in Services Under the State) Bill, 2025, and the Telangana Backward Classes (Reservation of Seats in Rural and Urban Local Bodies) Bill, 2025. Both were approved by the
Telangana Legislative Assembly in March and subsequently forwarded to the President after Governor Jishnu Dev Varma referred them for consideration.
In a related move, the state government has also proposed to amend the Panchayat Raj Act, 2018, through an ordinance removing the 50 per cent cap on reservations in local bodies, which would facilitate the government to enhance the quota for the BCs up to 42 percent. The Telangana Panchayat Raj (Amendment) Ordinance has likewise been reportedly sent to the President.
Party sources indicated that senior Congress leaders from the national leadership may join the Delhi protest, further elevating the political stakes.