The issue of categorisation of Scheduled Castes into four groups disrupted the proceedings in the Legislative Assembly for some time on Monday even as the main Opposition Congress staged a walkout from the House in protest against the government’s “inaction” on the issue.
As the House assembled for the day, the Congress moved an adjournment motion, seeking a debate on the government’s stand on the SC categorisation issue. Speaker S. Madhusudanachary, however, made it clear that adjournment motions would be taken up after the Question Hour. Congress members led by Opposition leader K. Jana Reddy raised the issue after the Question Hour again and the Speaker rejected the adjournment motion, claiming that a decision on whether or not to allow the adjournment was the discretion of the Chair.
Enraged over Chair’s decision, Congress members T. Jeevan Reddy, S.A. Sampath Kumar and others went into the well of the House, demanding a discussion on the issue. Mr. Jana Reddy recalled that the House had passed a resolution in support of SC categorisation with Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao assuring the members that an all-party delegation would be taken to New Delhi to persuade the Central government to permit the State to categorise SCs. There was no action on the issue more than two years after the passage of the resolution, he said before walking out of the House.
BJP floor leader G. Kishan Reddy too insisted that there was every need to persuade the Centre to allow categorisation of SCs as the Central government might not be aware of the seriousness of the issue in the State. MIM floor leader Akbaruddin Owaisi wanted the Government to ensure that its decision on enhancing reservations to minorities to 12% should also be simultaneously taken up.
Finance Minister Eatala Rajender said the Government was committed to its assurance to lead an all-party delegation. He criticised the Congress for not taking up the issue when the party was in power in the State and at the Centre for 10 years and said the Congress’ commitment to the issue was exposed with its changing stance. Another Minister T. Harish Rao said the Government would make it a point to raise the enhanced reservations to Muslims as and when the all-party delegation was taken to the Centre.
