No appointment with President: CM Revanth blames BJP, slams BRS silence

Hyderabad: After failing to secure an appointment with President Droupadi Murmu to facilitate the passage of the BC reservation bill for Telangana, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy criticised the BJP-led Central Government for acting against Telangana people’s interests.

He also took a dig at Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), which did not participate in the dharna in Delhi. All parties participated in the Telangana Assembly, but in New Delhi, only Congress can be seen protesting, he said.

The Telangana government’s three-day stay in Delhi from August 5 to 7 has not yielded the much-wanted opportunity to meet the president to push for the bill.

Addressing the media on Thursday, CM Revanth highlighted some aspects of the Delhi visit:

1) Presidential appointment and BC reservations

CM Revanth stated that the Telangana government had been seeking a joint appointment with the President for 10 days to appeal for BC reservations and the approval of an ordinance.

He claimed that the Central government and Prime Minister Narendra Modi had prevented this meeting from happening. He called this a ‘regrettable’ and ‘painful’ insult to the people of Telangana.

2) Accusations against the BJP

The Chief Minister accused the BJP of a long-standing conspiracy to violate the rights of weaker sections. He cited historical incidents such as the BJP’s Rath Yatra, which he claimed was intended to block the implementation of the Mandal Commission’s recommendations for BC reservations; the ‘Youth for Equality' movement, which he alleged the BJP used to obstruct BC reservations in institutions like IITs and IIMs during the Manmohan Singh administration.

3) Topic of Muslim reservation

CM Revanth also challenged the BJP’s current stance on Muslim reservations within the BC category, pointing out that Muslims in other States, including those where the BJP is in power (like Maharashtra, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh), are already receiving OBC reservations. He referenced a 2017 case where a Muslim from Rajasthan received an OBC reservation in the UPSC.

He emphasised that reservations are based on social and economic backwardness, not religion, and that the Telangana government’s bills do not include religious reservations.

4) Critique of the BRS party

CM Revanth Reddy accused the BRS of acting as a ‘shikhandi’ (a character from the Mahabharata known for being used as a pawn), claiming they are colluding with the BJP to damage the Congress party.

He questioned why BRS MPs did not participate in a recent protest and instead mocked the Congress party’s efforts. He concluded by calling both the BJP and BRS ‘BC traitors’ and ‘anti-BCs’ in the eyes of Telangana society.

CM Revanth urged the immediate passage of the relevant bills and ordinances. He warned that prolonging the issue would have consequences and affirmed that the Congress party would continue to act against what it perceives as the ‘wrong decisions’ of the BJP and BRS.