Telangana Congress to finalise action plan on 42 pc BC quota, local bodies in PAC meet

Hyderabad, Aug 11 (PTI) The ruling Congress in Telangana announced plans to hold a PAC meeting this weekend to decide the next steps on key issues, including implementing 42 percent reservation for backward classes and conducting local body elections.

The Political Affairs Committee meeting is likely to be convened on August 16 or 17, Congress sources said.

State Congress president B Mahesh Kumar Goud met Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Monday to discuss key issues, including the upcoming bypoll for Jubilee Hills assembly constituency, necessitated by the death of sitting BRS MLA Maganti Gopinath in June.

Among other topics, the two leaders also discussed ways to take the government’s welfare and development programmes to the people, sources added.

On August 6, Revanth Reddy led a protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi, demanding Presidential assent for the Backward Classes reservation bills. He alleged that the BJP-led central government was stalling the bills passed by the state legislature, calling it "anti-OBC." The Telangana Assembly passed the two bills in March to increase reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBC) to 42 per cent in education, employment, and local bodies.

The bills were forwarded to the governor and are currently awaiting Presidential assent.

After failing to secure a meeting with the President, Reddy on August 7 accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah of interfering to block his appointment with President Droupadi Murmu regarding the bills.

The state government has been awaiting Presidential approval for four months, while the Telangana High Court has directed that local body elections be held by September 30. PTI SJR SJR SSK