Ahead of the all party meeting called by Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi on July 18, Union Minister and President of president of the Republican Party of India, Ramdas Athawale said that he will be raising issues of Maratha reservation, OBC reservation and reservation for Kshatriya community in the meeting.
Apart from reservation issues, the RPI president also said, that he will also demand an amendment in the law to restore OBC reservation in local bodies, which was revoked by Supreme Court."
OBCs are on the verge of losing their political reservation in local bodies across Maharashtra as it was quashed by the Supreme Court last month.
The apex court had directed that the Zilla Parishad elections be held on the basis of 27 percent reservation. The OBC reservation issue is of political importance as the community, though fragmented into nearly 382 castes, makes up nearly 52% of the state’s population. The court's decision has come at the time when OBCs were already worried about losing a share in their existing 27% reservation in government jobs and education following demands made by the Maratha community to incorporate them in the OBC category as they have lost their reservation benefits following another verdict of the Supreme Court.
The apex court on May 5 struck down the Maharashtra government's 2018 law granting reservation to the Maratha community in admissions and government jobs while hearing a batch of petitions that challenged the Maharashtra State Reservation for Socially and Educationally Backward Classes Act, 2018. The SC had said it would breach the ceiling of 50% quota limit imposed by itself in a landmark verdict in 1992.The apex court on May 5 had striked down Maratha reservation in admissions, government jobs, calls it unconstitutional.
Notably, the RPI leader had led his party's protest at Azad Maidan today for the demand of 5% Muslim reservation and other issues such as OBC, Maratha reservation and increasing anti-Dalit incidents in the state.
Meanwhile, talking about the all-party meeting on July 18, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is also likely to be present. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla will also chair an all-party meeting of the floor leaders of the lower house of Parliament on July 18.
The government also has a series of legislations on its agenda in the Parliament session which will conclude on August 13.
