New Delhi: After Jammu and Kashmir and Haryana, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is play the reservation and ‘Save Constitution’ card in Maharashtra assembly elections too.
On October 5, when Haryana elections will conclude, Rahul Gandhi will hold a ‘Honour Constitution’ conference in Kolhapur, Maharashtra the same day. This will be in run-up to the assembly elections in Maharashtra.
Kolhapur has been specifically chosen because Maharaja Shahu Ji Maharaj of Kolhapur had given 50 per cent reservation to the lower castes in 1902. He is considered as the pioneer and champion of social justice.
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Currently, Congress MP from Kolhapur Shahu Ji Shah Ji Maharaj is a descendant of Shahu Ji Maharaj. And therefore, raking up the reservation issue assumes significance. All the Dalit and tribal organisations, including Jai Bhim, campaigning for social justice in Maharashtra are also being invited to this programme of Rahul Gandhi. Some women’s organisations will also participate in the summit.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) may have targeted Rahul Gandhi for his statements regarding reservation in the US, but the Congress leader will once again make political maneuverings here by reiterating the demand for conducting caste census and removing the cap on reservation.
What did Rahul say in the US
During his US visit, Rahul Gandhi had issued a clarification regarding his remarks on “ending reservation”. He said his comments were “misinterpreted”. Rahul Gandhi said he was not against reservation, and his party will take the quota beyond 50 per cent if it comes into power. “Let me make it clear – I am not against reservation. We will take reservation beyond the limit of 50 per cent,” Gandhi said at the National Press Club in the US.
The Congress MP had also pointed out the need for the caste census, which has three components — institutional survey, socio-economic survey, and census.
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