Andhra Pradesh to provide 5 per cent quota for Kapus out of 10 per cent EWS reservation

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, who made the announcement, said the state government had urged the Centre to earmark the quota for Kapu community a long time ago, but the Narendra Modi government had not acceded to it.

"We had requested the Centre to extend five per cent reservation to the Kapu community long ago but the BJP leaders did not agree.

"Now, out of the 10 per cent reservation provided by the Centre to the economically weaker sections, we will give five per cent to Kapus and the balance to the EWS," Naidu told TDP leaders during a teleconference.

Parliament earlier this month passed a Constitution amendment bill providing for 10 per cent reservation in government jobs and education for economically weaker sections in the general category.

The Telugu Desam Party, ahead of the 2014 elections, had promised to include the Kapu community in the backward classes list and extend five per cent reservation in jobs and educational institutions.

In December 2017, the state assembly had adopted a a Bill provide five per cent reservation to the Kapus community, including its three sub-castes.

The bill was subsequently forwarded to the Centre seeking a Constitutional amendment to include the community in the backward classes list under Schedule IX of the Constitution as it would exceed the 50 per cent ceiling for reservation imposed by the Supreme Court.

The Centre did not accept the state's plea on the ground that it violated the apex court judgement.

Earlier, the AP State Commission for Backward Classes had submitted a report recommending the reservation.

However, the Commission's then Chairman Justice K L Manjunatha was not a signatory to the report and it was submitted to the state government by two other members.

The commission was set up following an agitation by the Kapus in January 2016.

After passage of the bill in the assembly, the Naidu government had been claiming it had honoured its promise on reservation and that it was the Modi government that did not approve the quota for Kapus.

Opposition parties in Andhra Pradesh 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 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.

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