Squarely accusing the former chief minister and Telugu Desam Party leader, N. Chandrababu Naidu, of “hoodwinking the Kapu caste in the State by allocating to them 5 per cent of the 10 per cent economically backward reservation given by the Centre", Chief Minister Y.S Jaganmohan Reddy said the TDP has not learnt any lessons though it has suffered a crushing defeat in the recent Assembly and General elections.
He was replying to a query on Kapu reservations raised by the former CM during a debate on the State Budget on Tuesday in the State Assembly at Amaravati.
The Chief Minister said that the TDP had in its 2014 election manifesto promised to include the Kapu caste in the BC list and provide them reservations, but it did not honour the promise.
"A few months before the elections, when the Union Government provided 10 per cent quota to economically backward sections among the other castes, the former CM got passed a bill in the Assembly allocating five out of the 10 per cent to Kapus, knowing fully well that it would not stand legal scrutiny," he alleged.
Jaganmohan also said that the YSR Congress in its poll manifesto had made it clear that without compromising the interests of the BCs all avenues would be explored on the issue of giving quota to the Kapus within the constitutional framework. He had then said, " our party is committed to their welfare and we will spend Rs 2,000 crores per annum on their welfare. During the next five years, ₹10,000 crores would be spent."
Earlier, Chandrababu Naidu, had sought to know whether the five per cent quota given to the Kapus by the TDP Government would be implemented or not.
Rebutting the charges of YSR Congress Party, he said his government had made all efforts to keep the promise to the Kapu caste in its party manifesto. “When the NDA Government after a constitutional amendment provided 10 quota to the economically backward among other castes, the TDP Government allocated 5 per cent to the Kapus. We did justice," he added.
Reservation to the Kapus is one of the key issues which led to the defeat of the TDP and the victory of the YSR Congress in the 2019 elections, it is said. The TDP lost in the two Godavari districts, where the Kapus are dominant, and in many pockets of other districts where they have a sizeable presence.