HYDERABAD: Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka on Thursday made it clear that the government and the Congress will fight both legally and politically to secure 42 per cent reservations for BCs in local bodies.
Speaking to reporters at Gandhi Bhavan, he alleged that the BRS and BJP were responsible for the current situation with regard to BC reservations.
The deputy chief minister said that while the previous BRS government had imposed a ceiling of 50 per cent on reservations in local bodies, the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre was blocking assent to the bills passed by the Telangana Assembly to enhance the reservations in the state.
“Now, the BRS and BJP have no right to blame the Congress government,” he said, adding: “In 2018, the then BRS government passed a law setting a cap on BC reservations in local bodies at 50 per cent. That law has today become an obstacle to implementing 42 per cent reservations for BCs. The BJP-led government at the Centre is trying to block the bill enhancing BC reservations to 42 per cent after it was passed by the state Assembly and sent to the President for assent.”
He further said: “The high court has directed that elections must be held by September 30, 2025. We tried to give 42 per cent reservations to BCs so elections could be held. Today, the BRS and BJP are blaming us. We carried out a scientific survey and converted those findings into a bill. The bill we presented in the Assembly is pending with the Governor. Who stopped the bill that the Telangana Assembly unanimously approved and sent? The BJP government, right? The BJP blocked the bills. People will not forgive the BRS and BJP.”
TPCC president B Mahesh Kumar Goud said that the Congress will announce its future course of action after analysing the high court’s order. He said the government had sincerely tried to provide 42 per cent reservations to BCs and accused the BJP and BRS of stalling the process.
High Court stay order disappointing: Ponnam
Meanwhile, BC Welfare Minister Ponnam Prabhakar expressed disappointment over the high court stay order. “We did not expect the court to issue a stay order. Due to the delay in holding local body elections, the funds that should come from the Centre are being withheld,” he said.
“The Congress government will announce the future course of action after receiving the copy of the high court’s interim orders,” he said.
Reiterating the Congress’s commitment to BC reservations, he said, “The government is committed to providing 42 per cent reservations for BCs. We had presented strong arguments on behalf of the government in the court.”
He said that the government had conducted a caste survey, constituted a dedicated commission, formed a subcommittee, obtained cabinet approval, passed a law in the Legislative Assembly, and sent it to the Governor.
He demanded that the BRS and BJP must explain why they did not implead in the case, clarifying that the Congress is the champion of social justice. “Under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi, we will go to the elections with a commitment to social justice,” he asserted.
Another minister Vakati Srihari, who is also a BC leader, said: “Even after gathering empirical data, imposing a stay order and trying to deprive BCs of their rights is condemnable.” He alleged, “They tried to snatch away the rightful share of BCs by preventing the implementation of reservations. The entire Telangana society must think about who is actually obstructing BC reservations.” He demanded that the BJP and BRS must implead themselves in the case in support of BC reservations and alleged that otherwise, they would go down in history as betrayers of the BC community.
Srihari appealed to BCs not to lose hope, assuring that the Congress government will make every effort to ensure the implementation of reservations for BCs. “There is no question of going back on that commitment,” he declared.
Minister Jupally Krishna Rao alleged, “The BJP and BRS joined hands to obstruct BC reservations. It was the BRS that filed the cases in court. The BJP and BRS together are doing injustice to the BCs.” Addressing the delay in approving the BC reservation bill, Jupally said, “The reason the Governor withheld approval is because the BJP government at the Centre is against it.”
