VHR Asks BJP to Lift 50% Quota Cap

Hyderabad: Senior TPCC leader V. Hanumantha Rao on Monday called on the NDA-led BJP government at the Centre to pass a bill in Parliament that would allow reservations to exceed the current 50 percent cap.

Addressing the media, Hanumantha Rao stated that the Congress supports the cause of Backward Classes (BCs). The demand follows the JD(U)'s insistence that the quota increase in Bihar be included in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution.

Hanumantha Rao highlighted that the Congress wants all state laws regarding reservations for Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), and Other Backward Classes (OBCs) to be included in the Ninth Schedule. He referenced a 1994 Tamil Nadu law as a precedent for this inclusion.

The TPCC leader also urged JD(U) leaders to pressure their ally, the BJP, to pass the necessary bill in Parliament. However, he noted that merely placing reservation laws exceeding the 50 percent cap in the Ninth Schedule is not a comprehensive solution, citing a 2007 Supreme Court decision that allows for judicial review of such laws.