Hyderabad: A special session of Telangana Assembly will be held on April 16 to pass a legislation to increase quota for Muslims and tribals, Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao announced on Wednesday.
He said the percentage of enhanced quota will be decided by the state Cabinet at a meeting on April 15.
After passing the bill, which will take the overall reservation quota in the state beyond the prescribed limit of 50 percent, it will be sent to the Union government for President’s assent.
He said if the central government refused to include the legislation in Constitution’s 9th Schedule as was done in the case of Tamil Nadu, Telangana would approach the Supreme Court.
Defending the proposed move, he said it was the responsibility of his government to increase the overall quantum of reservation in line with the social composition of the newly-created Telangana. Rao was addressing a news conference after the meeting of state cabinet, which accepted report of State Backward Classes Commission on the socio-economic conditions of Muslims and report of another panel to increase quota for tribals.
He said that his Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) was taking the step to implement its poll promise to increase quota for Muslims and Scheduled Tribes to 12 percent each.
KCR, as Rao is popularly known, pointed out that the socially and economically backward sections among Muslims are already enjoying 5 percent reservation in jobs and education.
The Chief Minister said Telangana’s legislation would be on the lines of the law passed by Tamil Nadu and included in 9th Schedule. He announced that his government will also increase the quota for Scheduled Castes (SCs) by one percent. The SCs currently enjoy 15 percent reservation while they constitute 16.3 percent of the state’s population.
KCR said there was also a need to increase quota for backward classes. The cabinet has asked BC Commission to submit a report in six to seven months after a thorough study of the socio-economic conditions of BCs. (IANS)
