YSRC Urges Justice Balakrishnan Commission To Grant SC Status to Dalit Christians
The delegation, which included party MPs, former ministers and senior leaders, appealed to the Justice Balakrishnan Commission to submit a favourable report on the issue.
Vijayawada: The YSRC has urged the Justice Balakrishnan Commission to recommend Scheduled Caste (SC) status for Dalit Christians.
A YSRC delegation led by MP Maddila Gurumoorthy met the commission's chairperson in New Delhi on Saturday and submitted a representation seeking the extension of SC status to Dalit Christians.
Addressing the media at Andhra Bhavan later, Gurumoorthy said Dalit Christians should be accorded the same rights and protections available to Scheduled Castes. He argued that if SC status continues for Sikhs and Buddhists after conversion, similar treatment should be extended to Dalit Christians.
He said several commissions had observed that religious conversion does not alter the social and economic conditions of Dalits. Gurumoorthy also recalled that the YSRC government had passed a unanimous resolution in the Andhra Pradesh Assembly in 2023 seeking SC status for Dalit Christians and forwarded it to the Centre.
MP Golla Baburao said caste-based social disadvantages persisted irrespective of religion and called for an end to discrimination based on faith. He urged the Central government to act in the interests of equality and justice while safeguarding Dalit rights.
The delegation, which included party MPs, former ministers and senior leaders, appealed to the Justice Balakrishnan Commission to submit a favourable report on the issue.
