Bhatti: 42% BC Quota Bills Is Not a Political Matter Between Cong and BJP
Deputy CM says issue is State vs Centre, not party politics; calls dharna a decisive action for BCs
Hyderabad: Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka said that the issue of Telangana's 42 per cent BC reservation Bills was not a matter of political rivalry between the Congress and the BJP, but a critical issue between the state and central governments.
Addressing the maha dharna at Jantar Mantar in Delhi on Wednesday, Vikramarka said that the Telangana government had completed all statutory formalities for extending the 42 per cent BC quota, but lamented that the Centre was obstructing the process by not clearing the bills.
He expressed hope that the Bills would soon receive clearance from the President of India. “The survey undertaken by the Telangana government has become a model for the nation,” Vikramarkai said, emphasising the survey’s success as a guiding framework for the entire country’s approach.
He reiterated that the Telangana government was fully committed to the BC reservation Bill, and that Congress MPs, along with MPs from other states, had expressed solidarity by attending the protest at Jantar Mantar.
“The state has done its part — now it is up to the Centre to give its approval,” he added. Vikramarka also highlighted that BC reservation had been a decades-long aspiration for the OBCs, and he hoped the BJP, which had supported the bill in the Assembly, would continue that support in Parliament.
Addressing criticism regarding the BC quota ordinance that preceded the Bill, the minister explained that it was necessary to remove the 50 per cent reservation cap in local bodies in Telangana, which had been imposed during the BRS regime. He clarified that without addressing this issue, the old restrictions would persist, prompting the Telangana government to proactively bring in the ordinance.
He described the dharna at Jantar Mantar as a historic movement, stressing that it was not symbolic but a decisive action to ensure 42 per cent reservation in local bodies and to secure quotas in education and employment for BCs.
He also said that Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy had entrusted the Planning Department, under Bhatti’s supervision, with the task of conducting the survey, which was completed with the involvement of 1.05 lakh government employees. “Fulfilling Rahul Gandhi’s promise to provide a 42 per cent BC quota is our responsibility,” he explained.