HYDERABAD: AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday announced that the Congress’ Social Justice 2.0, a new movement for social justice, equity, and empowerment of the weaker sections, has begun in Telangana.
On Thursday, a delegation led by Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy met Kharge and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi in Delhi to discuss the proposal to enhance BC reservations to 42% in the state. The delegation urged the party leadership to exert pressure on the Union government to approve two Bills on BC quota passed by the state Assembly.
The delegation comprised Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, AICC state in-charge Meenakshi Natarajan, TPCC President B Mahesh Kumar Goud, ministers N Uttam Kumar Reddy, Konda Surekha, Ponnam Prabhakar, Vatiki Srihari and Professor Kancha Ilaiah.
After the meeting, the AICC chief wrote on X: “Our unwavering fight, spearheaded by Rahul Gandhi for justice, is giving voice to the millions from SC, ST, OBC and EWS communities, who have been sidelined for decades.”
He noted that despite constituting a vast majority of India’s population, these communities remain glaringly under-represented in top corporate boards, the judiciary, bureaucracy and premier institutions. “For instance, even today, a Parliamentary response reveals that 80% of OBC professor posts and 83% of ST posts remain vacant in central universities.
Our demand has been to conduct a nationwide caste census and remove the arbitrary 50% cap on reservations. This government has agreed to conduct the caste survey under immense public pressure, but has failed to remove the cap,” Kharge added.
‘Groundbreaking survey’
He said the scientific manner in which Telangana has conducted its survey should serve as a model for the entire nation. Based on this groundbreaking socio-economic survey, the Telangana government has recommended 42% reservations for OBCs in local body elections and educational institutions. This significant Bill is currently awaiting the President’s assent.
He also expressed gratitude to the Independent Expert Working Group (IEWG), led by former Supreme Court judge Justice B Sudarshan Reddy, and the delegation for their groundbreaking work.
Meanwhile, Revanth Reddy posted on X: “In a game-changing discussion, the Congress top leadership has expressed complete backing and commitment to taking all steps to ensure the Telangana Model of Social Justice for OBCs is implemented at the national level. The Telangana Caste Survey, the first in Independent India, led to the resolution to provide 42% reservations for OBCs in local body elections.”
He further said that the Congress, which has a history of bringing about historic changes in society through people’s movements, is now determined to ensure complete social justice and empowerment for OBCs.
The CM also met AICC General Secretary and MP Priyanka Gandhi in Delhi. He said he had shared all the details of the Telangana Caste Survey and highlighted its key findings.
He stated: “Priyanka Gandhi greatly appreciated our state’s decision and resolve to provide a 42% quota for OBCs in education, jobs, and political positions. She promised her fullest support in this fight for total justice for OBCs.”