Rajya Sabha Member and Congress leader K. Chiranjeevi on Sunday suggested a sub plan for Backward Classes on the lines of those existing for SCs and STs.
In a statement, he said BCs should be allocated the maximum number of seats in law-making bodies and added that it was imperative for a sub-plan to be chalked out exclusively for their welfare. The Central and State governments need to take the initiative and work towards achieving the end, he said in a press release. He expressed happiness at the recent move by the Cabinet sub-committee headed by Deputy Chief Minister Damodar Rajanarasimha that had recommended that the SC and ST sub-plan be made an Act in the Legislative Assembly. Individuals and organisations had worked ceaselessly for years to ensure that funds allocated for SC/ST welfare be utilised properly, he said. He recalled that around the time he met Congress president Sonia Gandhi on the issue of the merger of the Praja Rajyam with the Congress, one of his conditions pertained to measures aimed at ushering in social justice. The Cabinet sub-panel report only held a mirror to the earnestness of the Congress.