BC Reservation Demand Blocks Highway Traffic as Protests Spread Across Telangana
At Osmania University, student groups formed human chains and held a rally from the Arts College to Tarnaka crossroads under the banner Justice for BC Bandh. Students carried banners reading “Equity Not Charity” and “Representation is Our Right.”
Hyderabad: Traffic along National Highway 44 near Aramghar came to a grinding halt on Saturday as members of the Telangana Backward Class (BC) Students’ Association, joined by student unions and social organisations, staged a day-long bandh demanding 42 percent reservation for BCs in local body elections.
The protest drew participation from a wide coalition of groups, including the All India Students’ Federation (AISF), Students’ Federation of India (SFI), Progressive Democratic Students’ Union (PDSU), Telangana Vidya Vidyarthi (VV), Muslim Students’ Federation (MSF) and several independent Dalit-Bahujan student and youth fronts. Civil society organisations and Left-aligned unions also extended support, calling it a movement for “constitutional justice.”
At Aramghar, hundreds of protesters occupied the highway, raising slogans and waving placards, leading to long traffic snarls stretching towards Shamshabad and Rajendranagar. Medchal MLA Prakash Goud joined the sit-in, saying that the BCs communities, who make up more than half of Telangana’s population, continued to face under-representation despite their economic and social contribution. “We are not asking for favours,” he said. “We are asking for what the Constitution already promises, fair participation in governance.”
Speaking at the rally, Vemula Ramakrishna accused successive governments of neglecting BC community interests. “For 79 years, policies and budgets have been drafted without proportional representation,” he said. “We pay taxes, we build this state’s economy, yet we remain invisible in decision-making. Until the 42 percent quota becomes law, our movement will not stop.”
At Osmania University, student groups formed human chains and held a rally from the Arts College to Tarnaka crossroads under the banner Justice for BC Bandh. Students carried banners reading “Equity Not Charity” and “Representation is Our Right.”
Professors Khaseem, Konda Nageshwara Rao, Ramulu and Bhina Veni Ram Shepherd participated in the gathering, calling the demand constitutionally valid and essential for genuine social justice. “This is about restoring balance in public life, not dividing society,” said Prof. Ramulu.
