BC bodies want government to hold local bodies’ polls after hiking quota

13 BC organizations and 30 BC communities demand State government enhance BC quota to 42% before local body elections.

About 13 Backward Classes organisations and 30 BC communities associations have demanded that the State government conduct local bodies elections to posts like sarpanch, MPTC and ZPTC members only after enhancing the BC quota for them.

At a meeting held here on Friday, Rajya Sabha member and president of the National BC Welfare Association R. Krishnaiah asked the Congress government to enhance the reservation for BCs from the existing 20% to 42% as promised by the ruling party in its election manifesto before holding the local bodies’ polls. The meeting was attended by Lalkrishna, G. Krishna, N. Venkatesh, Danakarna Chary, V. Ramakrishna, Akhil Goud, Praneetha, Shivamma among others.

Stating that the government had announced that it would hold elections to local bodies in June-end, he suggested it to hold the elections only after taking up caste census as it had already taken the decision to take up caste census. But, the process for caste census was yet to begin and once taken up it would take at least two months for completion.

Mr. Krishnaiah sought to know how the State government would hold local body elections without conducting a caste census as promised. Where was the need to conduct the local bodies elections in haste, he asked and reminded the State government about how AICC leader Rahul Gandhi had been repeatedly speaking in his election meetings that they would hold caste census, if voted to power.

He mentioned that in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh the reservation for BCs in local bodies was enhanced to 45% and had given opportunity to BCs even in the general seats for Zilla Parishad chairperson, Mandal Parishad president and Municipal chairperson posts.

It was due to a long fight that the then Chief Minister N T Rama Rao introduced 20% reservation to BCs in local bodies in 1986. Later in 1993, then Chief Minister K. Vijaya Bhaskara Reddy had increased it to 34%, but in 2019 the reservation was brought down to 22% based on a Supreme Court judgement, Mr. Krishnaiah explained.