Backward Classes demand 50 per cent tickets

Hyderabad: Leaders of Backward Classes communities have demanded 50 per cent of tickets in the coming elections. BC leader and former Telugu Desam legislator R. Krishnaiah along with other BC leaders met Congress senior leader K. Jana Reddy at his residence in Hyderabad on Friday and discussed various issues that the BC community faced in the state.

The BC leaders requested Mr Jana Reddy to address their problems in the Congress manifesto, besides giving 50 per cent of the tickets to candidates from the community in the forthcoming Assembly elections. The discussions went on for an hour.

Speaking to mediapersons, Mr Krishnaiah said, “We have demanded 50 per cent of Congress tickets to the BCs and asked the party to work towards reserving 50 per cent of Assembly constituencies for the BC community. The Congress should work for implementation of the BC Bill in Parliament.”

He said the Telangana Rashtra Samiti government had kept many of the issues concerning the BCs pending. About 12.5 lakh BCs had applied unsuccessfully for subsidised loans. “This is the reason we have demanded that the Congress come up with a BC sub-plan,” he said.

Mr Krishnaiah said, “All the BC loans should be given with 90 per cent subsidy. The 2.5 lakh contract and outsourcing employees from the BCs should be made permanent and 2.3 lakh vacant posts in the government should be filled immediately.”

He said the BC students’ fee reimbursement should be brought to the level given by the late Chief Minister Y.S. Rajashekhar Reddy. “The TRS had removed 26 castes from the BC list. We have requested Mr Jana Reddy to add them to the list,” Mr Krishnaiah said.

Mr Jana Reddy said, “I will discuss with the party the issues they discussed. The Congress will always work for the uplift of the BCs.”