Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy emphasised the YSR Congress Party's "final word" on it.Amid the shrill of the communal campaign of the BJP designed around Muslims, reservation and minority quotas, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy said that the 4 percent reservation for Muslims will remain.
Muslims have had 4 percent reservations in education and employment under the Other Backward Classes category in both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh since 2007 when the two states were undivided. However, this quota is not deducted from the existing quota of the OBCs, but operates under a separate OBC category called BC-E.
Speaking at an election rally in Kurnool, Chief Minister Reddy criticised former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu’s on a host of issues. “On one hand, Chandrababu Naidu continues to join hands with the BJP which stands on removing the 4 per cent Muslim reservation, on the other hand, to seek minority votes, he comes up with new drama. Have you witnessed a chameleon-like Chandrababu Naidu?”
Emphasising the YSR Congress Party’s “final word” on the subject, Reddy added, “Come what may, 4 percent of Muslim reservations will remain and that is YSR Congress Party’s final word on it. My only question to Chandrababu Naidu is why does he continue the alliance with the NDA even after the NDA government pledges to cancel the 4 per cent reservation?”
Reddy said the upcoming Assembly as well as Lok Sabha elections in the southern state are crucial for the future of the welfare schemes. He said, “In the next four days, the battle of Kurukshetra is set to take place. This election is not to elect MLAs and MPs, this election will decide the future of ongoing schemes and the development of every household. If you vote for Chandrababu Naidu, you are stopping all the welfare that this government has brought to the doorstep of the household.”
In his critique of TDP chief Naidu’s tenure, Reddy spoke about the lack of benefits delivered to the underprivileged segments of society. “For 14 years, Chandrababu Naidu boasted about being the CM – for a 3-year term. Does any poor remember the welfare that this man has brought to the state? We have brought welfare without discriminating against religion, caste, community, or other party members.”
The upcoming Assembly and Lok Sabha elections in Andhra Pradesh are scheduled for May 13, with the vote count slated for June 4. In the 2019 Assembly elections, the YSRCP won 151 seats, while the TDP trailed with 23 seats and Jana Sena one seat in the 175-member assembly. Similarly, in the Lok Sabha polls, the YSRCP emerged victorious in 22 constituencies out of the state’s 25, leaving the TDP with just three seats. The BJP failed to secure a single seat in the state.