Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has promised to increase reservation beyond the 50 per cent cap, if elected, to provide more opportunities for Dalits, Adivasis, backwards, and the poor.
In 1992, the Supreme Court had held that caste-based reservations cannot exceed 50 per cent.
Speaking at a rally in Madhya Pradesh's Ratlam district on Monday, Gandhi said: "We will give the amount of reservation required by the Dalits, Adivasis, backwards, and poor."
Gandhi, whose candidature from Rae Bareli was announced last week, said that the election is about saving the Constitution, which he claims is under threat from the BJP and RSS. "They want to finish it, change it. We're trying to save it. They want to take away your rights of water, forest, and land. PM Modi wants his rule," he said.
Gandhi also accused the BJP of planning to remove reservations, saying: "They say they will remove reservations. I want to tell you from this stage, we will increase reservation beyond the 50 per cent cap. We will give as much reservation as needed for the poor, the backwards, Dalits, and Adivasis."
He further criticised the media for not reporting atrocities against Adivasis, saying: "Your children are raped, your land is snatched, but media does not report. There is a reason. There are no Adivasis in these media companies."
Gandhi also highlighted the lack of representation in the government, saying: "90 bureaucrats run the country's government. They distribute the budgets. Only 1 out of the 90 is an Adivasi, three are from backward classes, three from the Dalit community. Your people are neither in the media nor the corporate world. We want to change this. This is why we have decided to carry out a caste Census and an economic survey."
Additionally, Gandhi assured farmers of relief in the form of assured MSP and loan waivers, saying: "These are our guarantees. They will change your life."
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This comes amid a high-pitched campaign for the Lok Sabha polls, with the BJP and Congress exchanging heated remarks over reservation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has alleged that the Congress plans to tinker with reservation for backward classes to benefit Muslims, which the Congress has denied.
After the conclusion of voting in two phases of the Lok Sabha elections on April 19 and April 26, the stage is all set for the third phase of the 18th Lok Sabha elections, which will take place on May 7.
In the third phase, polling will take place across 94 Lok Sabha constituencies covering 10 states and two UTs.
