We are committed to addressing SC categorisation issue: Kishan Reddy

Hyderabad: State BJP president and Union Minister G Kishan Reddy addressing the media on Monday revealed that the party was committed to ABCD categorisation in SC reservations. It has already started working on it.

Pointing out that the SC categorisation had been pending for the last seven and half decades, he said the Centre had done extensive exercise before PM Narendra Modi announced while addressing the Madiga Vishwaroopa Maha Sabha at Parade grounds recently. A committee was constituted to speed up the process and for day-to-day monitoring of cases before a seven-judge SC bench "not to decide whether to go for categorisation or not."

Reddy said Madiga Reservation Porata Samithi (MRPS) president Manda Krishna had met the PM on July 8 during his visit to Warangal and explained the issue. Following Modi's assurance, party president JP Nadda and Home Minister Amit Shah had held a meeting with party leaders, MRPS leaders, intellectuals and others in New Delhi on October 2 and discussed the issue.

There were two contradictory judgments by two benches, one favouring categorisation and another rejecting it. He said the bench favoured categorisation and suggested the issue be referred to a seven-judge bench. “Soon after the meeting Solicitor-General Tushar Mehata had requested the Chief Justice to constitute the bench to consider the issue. On October 10 the bench was constituted and notices were issued to all stakeholders to submit their written submissions before December 14. It shows, "We are committed to categorization in SC reservations. We had taken the responsibility on our shoulders. The party is committed to what it says and never deviates," he asserted.

He said only Modi dared to address a seven-and-a-half decade-long pending issue with all seriousness. Neither the Congress nor BRS had ever even tried to address it, except by extending only lip service. Reddy said Modi had spoken as a social activist on dais while addressing the issue in the meeting.

The PM addressed Tripple Talaq, Rama Janma Bhoomi, Article 370 and several other issues.

"We as a party wish last person in society should benefit; but some political parties are trying to ridicule the formation of committees. It was not aimed to decide whether to go for categorisation or not; it was to speed up the process and to monitor day-to-day progress”. He recalled that the first committee was constituted by former PM Lal Bahadur Shastri.