AP govt move to provide 5 pc quota for Kapus is election

Opposition parties in Andhra Pradesh Tuesday slammed as an "election gimmick" the Chandrababu Naidu government's decision to earmark five per cent reservation for upper caste Kapus out of the 10 per cent quota for economically weaker sections.

The upper caste Kapu community itself criticised the move, saying it would only cause strife between communities.

The opposition lashed out at Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, saying he was only seeking to cause bad blood among various communities and trying to hoodwink the Kapu community.

Earlier Tuesday, Naidu announced during a teleconference with his Telugu Desam Party leaders that his government has decided to earmark five per cent reservation for upper caste Kapus out of the 10 per cent quota for economically weaker sections provided by the Centre.

The main opposition YSR Congress said the Andhra Pradesh governments decision was an election gimmick and clearly aimed at hoodwinking the community.

The BJP charged the Chief Minister with trying to create a discord between communities.

Kapunadu, an organisation that represents the Kapu community, too lashed out at the TDP government saying the move would only cause bad blood between various communities.

"It is through a Constitutional amendment that the Centre is seeking to extend 10 per cent reservation to the EWS. If the quota is diluted, it will be a loss to the Kapus as well as other upper castes, YSRC senior leader and former minister Botsa Satyanarayana said.

Will other castes accept this? Is it practically possible to implement the quota? he asked at a press conference here.

It was a clear "political gimmick" by Naidu, who thought people would believe him, Botsa said.

BJP state president Kanna Lakshminarayana accused the Chief Minister of lacking sincerity on the reservation issue.

"He promised a lot of things, ahead of the 2014 elections, to various communities. Why did he not honour those promises? If he is sincere, Naidu should get the Valmiki-Boya community in the ST list and the washermen community in the SC list, he demanded.

The BJP president alleged that the TDP was only trying to derive political mileage by misleading and cheating people through 'fake' claims.

It will only be a myth if Naidu feels people will still trust him, he said.

The Kapunadu leader S Sunkara said their community did not require a quota-in-quota.

It will only cause a strife between various communities and will also not be legally tenable. He should keep his promise of including the Kapus in the BC list, he added.