Kapu quota giving jitters to Opposition, boost to TDP

Amaravati: In a strategic move, the Telugu Desam Party has decided not to have any kind of alliance with the Congress in the state and announced 5 per cent reservations to Kapu community.

The stand taken by the TDP is that Kapu, Ontari and others in this category are more than 50 per cent of the total population of upper castes in the state and hence the government has decided to give 5 per cent quota to them, out of the 10 per cent given by Central government to upper castes for the economically weaker sections. The TDP feels that the government is well within its right to take such a decision.

While the YSRCP and BJP termed it as a political gimmick. The argument being put forward by the TDP is that it was not a political move to bring the bill overnight and get it passed by extending the sitting of Parliament by a day without getting any study done by any committee or commission.

On the other hand, the TDP had constituted a commission on Kapus and based on its report, the government has taken a decision since the law passed by Parliament permits them to do so. Naidu said that both these parties (YSRCP and BJP) should explain how this was not a reform and why they were opposed to Kapus.

The Chief Minister on Wednesday directed the rank and file to take two issues to the people aggressively. One how the YSRCP and BJP were opposing the reservations the Kapus and how they were not cooperating in getting the special category status to the state. Along with that he said that the latest welfare measures like exemption of life tax to autos and tractors should also become talking points with the people, he said.

Naidu said YSRCP and BJP leaders were trying to create chaos between castes, we should be ready to tackle such situations. More than half in the upper caste category are Kapus. That is why from EBC 10 per cent reservations 5 per cent would be given to the Kapus. Naidu termed as “ridiculous” that the claim of Prime Minister Narendra Modi that 85 per cent of the corruption in the country had been plugged.

"Can Rs 43,000 crore scam in Rafale deal be called ending corruption? Is permitting bigwigs who committed fraud to run away from the country ending corruption? Modi in last five years has brought down that main pillar and dealt a big blow to public trust in banking system,” Naidu said. The Chief Minister stated that the remarks of Raghuram Rajan in Davos had exposed the hollowness of Modi misrule.

There was concern that the reforms were laid to rest during the BJP rule. People are worried that job generation was not on the right lines. He also felt that the BJP which was shaken by the recent Kolkata rally had not recovered yet and the statements of Modi and the party president Amit Shah reflected that.