Page 3 - Obc Quota

Caste census, economic mapping will 'uproot' 50% reservation cap: Rahul

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday underlined his party's resolve to conduct a caste census if voted to power, asserting that based on this right step along with economic mapping, the 50 per cent cap on reservation would be "uprooted". Gandhi said the Congress' slogan is "count" because that would be the first step towards justice. In a post in Hindi on X, the former Congress president said, "Have we ever wondered who is poor? How many are there and in what condition? Is it not necessary to count all this?" The caste survey conducted in Bihar revealed that 88 per cent of the poor population comes from Dalit, tribal, backward and minority communities, Gandhi said. "The figures from Bihar are just a small glimpse of the real picture of the country, we do not even have an idea in what condition the poor population of the country is living in," he said. "That is why we are going to take two historic steps -- caste census, economic mapping -- on the basis of which we will uproot

Amit Shah to visit Bihar today, address public meeting of BJP's OBC morcha

Union Home Minister Amit Shah will be in Bihar on Saturday to inaugurate the memorial of a veteran BJP leader and address a public meeting of the party's OBC Morcha. According to state BJP spokesperson Manoj Sharma, upon arrival here, Shah will go to the Agricultural Technology Application Research Institute (ATARI) on the outskirts of Patna. "A park named after late Kailashpati Mishra has been developed on two acres of land donated by ATARI. The home minister will inaugurate the park and unveil a statue of the late leader," said the BJP spokesman. Mishra was a senior leader of the Jana Sangh who served as a minister in the Bihar government headed by Karpoori Thakur, and later, became the BJP's first state president. After the function, Shah will leave for Paliganj where he will address a public meeting to be organised by the BJP OBC Morcha. The party's OBC Morcha president K Laxman said the programme at Paliganj is part of the "10,000 samajik sammelans" that the organisation will

MVA leaders stage protest, accuse Maha govt of misleading Marathas, OBCs

Legislators of the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi staged a protest on Monday before the start of the Budget session of the Maharashtra legislative assembly, accusing the government of misleading the Maratha and Other Backward Classes (OBC) communities. The week-long Budget session of the legislature began on Monday, during which the vote on account will be presented. Assembly elections are due in the state later this year. Leader of Opposition in Assembly Vijay Waddetiwar, Congress legislature party leader Balasaheb Thorat and other legislators gathered on the steps of the Vidhan Bhavan, displaying banners and shouting slogans against the Eknath Shinde-led government. The Opposition MLAs accused the state government of misleading the Maratha and OBC communities over the issue of quota. MVA comprises the Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and Sharad Pawar faction of the NCP, while the ruling coalition has the BJP, Shinde-led Shiv Sena and NCP group under Ajit Pawar as partners. Last week, the

Dalits, OBCs, tribals biggest beneficiaries of pro-poor schemes: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that Dalits, OBCs and tribals are the biggest beneficiaries of his government's pro-poor schemes, asserting that its greatest achievement in the past ten years is to pull 25 crore people out of poverty. Speaking after inaugurating and laying the foundation stones of 1.3 lakh houses under the Prime Minister Awas Yojana (PMAY), via video conference, Modi said that for any poor person having his own house is a guarantee of his better future. See the figure of 1.3 lakh houses. Even when I attended a national-level programme for giving houses under PMAY, I did not see such a huge figure. I congratulate the Gujarat government. For any poor person, having his own house is a guarantee of his better future, Modi said. The biggest beneficiaries of our government's pro-poor scheme are Dalits, OBCs (other backward castes) and tribals, Modi said, responding to the opposition's allegations that his government is ignoring SCs, STs and OBCs. Modi said

Cong govt in Guj included PM Modi's caste in OBC list in 1994: Amit Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday said it is very unfortunate that there is a debate on the caste of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and alleged that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has a habit of telling lies publicly and repeating those thereafter. Shah also said it was a Congress government in Gujarat that included Modi's caste in the list of Other Backward Classes (OBC) in 1994 and the Centre included the prime minister's caste in its OBC list in 2000. "Modi's caste was listed in Gujarat as OBC on July 25, 1994. At that time, the chief minister of Gujarat was Chhabildas Mehta and the party in power was the Congress. Till that time, Modi had not contested a single election. He used to work for the organisation only. The question of his caste did not come at all. "Subsequently, the Gujarat government recommended for the inclusion of his caste in the central OBC list. It was finally included in the central OBC list in 2000. At that time also, Modi was not in a position of power -

PM Modi's caste wasn't in Mandal Commission's OBC list: Ashok Gehlot

Gehlot further said if PM Modi considers himself as the biggest supporter of the OBC community, then he should have a nationwide caste census conducted at the earliest

What has PM Modi done for backward castes, asks Rajya Sabha MP Manoj Jha

Manoj Jha told ANI that PM Modi and his party have been unsuccessful in strengthening the backward classes in the country

Bill to provide OBC quota in J&K local bodies introduced in Lok Sabha

The Centre on Monday introduced a bill in the Lok Sabha to provide reservation to Other Backward Classes in local bodies in Jammu and Kashmir. Currently, there is no provision for reservation of seats for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in panchayats and municipalities in the Union territory. The aim of the Jammu and Kashmir Local Bodies Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024 is to uphold principles of fairness and inclusivity in local governance, thereby addressing long-standing disparities and ensuring justice for OBC citizens. "With this,...justice will be ensured to the citizens of Other Backward Classes of Jammu and Kashmir for the first time after 75 years of independence," according to the statement of objects and reasons of the bill. The bill says that in future all local body polls will be conducted by a State Election Commission consisting of a State Election Commissioner, instead of the Chief Electoral Officer of Jammu and Kashmir. The bill says the State Election Commissioner shall

Minister Chhagan Bhujbal's resignation not accepted: Deputy CM Fadnavis

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has said the resignation of senior OBC leader and state cabinet minister Chhagan Bhujbal has not been accepted. Chief Minister Eknath Shinde will be able to clarify on this, Fadnavis told reporters late Saturday night. Bhujbal, who has accused the Maharashtra government of facilitating "backdoor entry" of the Maratha community into the quota for the Other Backward Classes (OBCs), on Saturday said he resigned from the state cabinet on November 16 last year. He further said that he kept quiet for more than two months because the chief minister and the deputy CM asked him not to speak about it. Talking to reporters, Fadnavis said, "The chief minister will be able to clarify on this, but I can only say as of now that Bhujbal's resignation has not been accepted by the chief minister or me." Bhujbal, who belongs to the Ajit Pawar-led faction of the NCP, on Saturday reiterated that he is not opposed to Marathas getting the reservation b

It's backdoor entry of Marathas into OBC category: Bhujbal targets own govt

Maharashtra minister Chhagan Bhujbal on Saturday appeared to target his own government led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde as he questioned the "backdoor entry" of Marathas into the Other Backward Classes (OBC) community. He also termed the draft notification issued by the state government providing Kunbi certificates to all Marathas as a mere "eyewash", and said caste is determined by birth and not affidavits. The veteran OBC leader was talking to reporters here after Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange called off his indefinite fast in neighbouring Navi Mumbai this morning after the state government accepted his demands over reservation to his community. The state government issued a draft notification this morning to recognise as Kunbis all blood relatives of the Maratha community members whose Kunbi caste records have been found. Kunbi, an agrarian community, falls in the OBC category. Jarange had been demanding Kunbi certificates for all Marathas. Bhujbal, the food and civil

OBC reservation commission submits report to CM Dhami at his residence

Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Friday said that the tenure of the expert committee preparing the draft of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) for the state has been extended by 15 days

No 'vertical' reservation on lines of SC, ST, OBC for LGBTQs: Ex-CJI Lalit

Former Chief Justice of India U U Lalit on Thursday said the LGBTQ community is not entitled to claim "vertical" reservations like those given to the Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), Other Backward Classes (OBC), or Economically Weaker Section (EWS). He, however, said they may claim "horizontal" reservation on the lines of the ones for women and persons with disabilities. Justice Lalit, who retired as the 49th CJI in November 2022, was answering a query during the question and answer session after delivering a special lecture on 'ffirmative Action and Constitution of India' at the India International University of Legal Education and Research (IIULER) here. When asked whether the LGBTQ community will ever come under the ambit of constitutional affirmative action/reservation, he said, "Theoretically yes, but if I give the counter argument, not to belittle the idea, but to see that my birth in a community like SC, ST or OBC is something beyond my capacity while sexual ...

Eastern Zonal Council meet: Nitish demands for special status to Bihar

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Sunday raised before Union Home Minister Amit Shah his long-standing demand for grant of special category status to the state. At the 26th meeting of the Eastern Zonal Council here, chaired by Shah, Kumar also hoped that the Centre will consider the request for placing in the ninth schedule of the Constitution the state's recent legislations by which quotas for deprived castes were raised from 50 per cent to 65 per cent. The Ninth Schedule of the Constitution includes a list of Central and state laws that cannot be challenged in courts. In 1992, the Supreme Court capped reservations for the backward classes at 50 per cent. "The CM urged the Centre to accord special status to Bihar in the meeting. Bihar has been raising the issue of Special status to the state since 2010. The fresh demand was necessitated by findings of the caste survey carried out by the grand alliance government in the state," a CMO statement said. "The state government has ...

Over 13,600 SC, ST and OBC students dropped out of IITs, IIMs in 5 yrs: MoE

Over 13,600 reserved category students dropped out from central universities, Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) over the last five years, Lok Sabha was informed on Monday. Union Minister of State for Education Subhas Sarkar shared the statistics in a written reply to a query by BSP member in Lok Sabha Ritesh Pandey. In the case of Central Universities (CUs), Sarkar said that as many as 4596 OBC, 2424 SC, and 2622 ST students dropped out in the last five years. In IITs, 2066 OBCs, 1068 SC and 408 ST students dropped out. In IIMs, the figure remained at 163, 188, and 91 for OBC, SC and ST students, respectively. "In the higher education sector, students have multiple options and they choose to migrate across institutions and from one course/programme to another in the same institution. "The migration/withdrawal, if any, is mainly on account of securing seats by the students in other departments or institutions of their choice or on any

Caste shift in Indian politics: Census, reservations, focus on OBCs

The BJP made the OBCs as politically visible and influential as the Mandal offspring, if not more

Bhujbal says Maratha quota should not be at OBCs' expense, targets Jarange

Maharashtra minister Chhagan Bhujbal on Friday reiterated that the existing reservation for the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) should not be curtailed while giving reservation to the Marathas, and also hit out at Maratha activist Manoj Jarange over his recent statements. Speaking at a rally of OBC communities, the NCP leader asked how suddenly a number of records showing Marathas as belonging to the Kunbi caste were being found. Bhujbal and several other prominent OBC leaders including Congress leaders Vijay Wadettiwar, Rajesh Rathod, BJP MLC Gopichand Padalkar, Prakash Shendge and Mahadev Jankar attended the 'OBC Bhatke Vimukt Jaat Aarakshan Bachao Yalgaar Sabha' (rally for saving the reservation of OBCs and Nomadic Tribes) at Ambad in Jalna district of Maharashtra. The event took place 25 km from the Antarwali Sarati village where Jarange had launched a hunger strike for the demand of Maratha quota first in August and again in October. "OBCs have got reservation constitutionally .

PM Modi targets Congress, says it didn't implement quota for OBC community

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday accused the Congress of not implementing reservation for the OBC community despite the party ruling from "panchayat to Parliament" for so many years after Independence. Addressing a public rally in Mahasamund district of Chhattisgarh, Modi said the Congress' only target is to loot Chhattisgarh and fill its own coffers. Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel's son, his (CM's) relatives and officers close to him looted and destroyed Chhattisgarh in five years, he alleged. Modi also said he can challenge that no official social media platforms of the Congress have appealed to the people to buy local products. Polling in 20 out of the total 90 assembly seats in Chhattisgarh was held on November 7. Voting in the remaining 70 seats will be held on November 17. Modi said the first phase of voting in Chhattisgarh has busted the Congress' "balloon of lies" and now people have decided to teach a lesson to the party. The BJP-led Centre built 4 cror

No nationwide caste census since independence, limited data available

An official nationwide caste census has not been conducted since Independence, numbers collected by private and government enti­ties as part of other data collection exercises provide some insights

HC seeks Maha govt's response to pleas against order increasing OBC quota

The Bombay High Court has directed the Maharashtra government to submit its reply to a bunch of petitions challenging a March 1994 government resolution (GR) increasing reservation for the Other Backward Classes (OBCs). A division bench of Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Arif Doctor on Wednesday gave the government time till December 10 to file its affidavit and posted the matter for next hearing on January 3, 2024. The petitions claimed the reservation for OBCs was increased in 1994 without following due procedure. Incidentally, the issue of OBC reservation has come to the fore in recent months with some activists seeking reservation for the Maratha community in the OBC category. Some OBC leaders have been opposing the demand. According to one of the petitioners, Balasaheb Sarate, the OBC reservation in the state exceeds 42 per cent of the total reservation. Since 1994, more than 150 communities have been included in the OBC category without adhering to due procedure and

Recognise all Marathas as Kunbis under OBC category, activists demand

Activists supporting the Maratha reservation have claimed that the community members were recognised as Kunbi community during the Nizam era and hence all Marathas should be treated as Kunbis under the OBC category. The "Marathas and Kunbis inter-dined and intermarried freely," leading to blurring of lines between them, a pro-quota activist claimed. This cultural amalgamation further strengthens the argument that Marathas and Kunbis were closely related, both socially and culturally, he said. The agrarian Kunbi community already gets quota benefits in the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category. Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Thursday said every district collector will be asked to deploy 10 officials from the collectorate staff to find old records on the basis of which Kunbi caste certificates can be given to the eligible Marathas. One of the demands of Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange, who ended his indefinite fast after nine days on Thursday, is that they be given