Hyderabad: Telangana chief minister A Revanth Reddy has accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home minister Amit Shah of obstructing a delegation of Congress ministers and MPs from securing an appointment to meet President Droupadi Murmu.
He said the delegation only intended to seek her assent for the 42 percent reservation for Backward Classes (BCs) in education, employment, and local bodies, as well as the ordinance passed by the Telangana Assembly removing the 50 percent cap on reservations in local bodies.
Revanth Reddy recalled how the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had previously opposed the implementation of 27 percent reservations for BCs in central government jobs and public sector undertakings during the tenure of former Prime Minister VP Singh in the early 1990s.
He pointed out that the party had launched the ‘Rath Yatra’ in the name of ‘Ram Janma Bhumi’, disturbing religious harmony across the country to obstruct the implementation of the Mandal Commission’s recommendations.
He also cited instances where the BJP allegedly tried to block the implementation of BC reservations in central institutions such as the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), and central universities, under the slogan “Youth for Equality.”
“However, the then Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi went ahead and implemented the reservations. Now BJP is once again showing its true colours by trying to obstruct 42 percent reservations for BCs by claiming that Muslims were being given reservations through this,” he observed.
“Is there any reservation given to any particular caste or religion in the Bills sent by us to the President? The reservations being given to BCs have been given en bloc. Till now, there are no caste-wise or sub-caste-wise political reservations being given anywhere. I don’t know if Kishan Reddy and Bandi Sanjay have read the Bills, or if they are just making politically-motivated statements,” he said.
The chief minister gave the example of Abdul Sattar, who belongs to a backward Muslim caste and availed OBC reservation in the Union Public Services. He also mentioned that certain backward Muslim communities like Dudekoula, Noor Basha, and others engaged in caste-based occupations have been included in the OBC list since 1971.
“Those reservations are being implemented in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, and even the Prime Minister acknowledged the same in an interview. You are allowing the implementation of those reservations in the states where you are in power,” he said.
Revanth Reddy clarified that the reservations are being provided to BCs based on the socio-economic backwardness of specific communities, and not on religious grounds.
He further criticised the BJP for obstructing the implementation of the 42 percent BC reservation, while accusing the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) of playing the role of ‘Shikhandi’, a transgender character from the Mahabharata.
He questioned why BRS members in the Rajya Sabha did not participate in the Congress’ dharna at Jantar Mantar on Wednesday, August 6. Instead of supporting the Congress’ efforts to provide 42 percent BC reservations in Telangana, the BRS was allegedly insulting the initiative.
“You may feel that you have achieved a momentary victory, but the people of Telangana will treat you as the traitors of BCs. If you drag any issue for too long, it will only destroy you,” the chief minister cautioned both BRS and BJP, while demanding the President’s assent for the two BC reservation Bills and the ordinance on local body reservations.
Revanth Reddy said the state government currently has three options to implement 42 percent reservations for BCs in the upcoming local body elections.
The first option, he said, is to issue a government order overturning the 50 percent reservation cap imposed in 2018 by the BRS government. However, he warned that such a move could be challenged in court, possibly resulting in a stay order, making the effort ineffective.
The second option, he suggested, is to postpone the local body elections until the BC reservation issue is resolved. But this could paralyse village-level administration, as funds from the Centre would stop flowing to the local bodies.
The third and preferred option, he said, is to convince all political parties to voluntarily implement 42 percent BC reservations in the local body elections. This approach, he noted, would not require the Centre’s approval.
This post was last modified on August 7, 2025 10:01 pm