Will fight for Vokkaliga quota: Ex-CM

BENGALURU: Raking up the contentious reservation issue five months ahead of the 2023 Assembly elections, former Chief Minister Sadananda Gowda said that since the Vokkaliga community comprise at least 10 per cent to 12 per cent of the population, the state and central governments must consider the issue of quota for the community.

“We are ready to take to the streets to ensure that our demand is fulfilled,” he said. The state government had recently taken a decision to hike the SC/ST reservation. “This is not charity but our legitimate right,” Gowda asserted. 

Speaking during an agitation meeting at the Vokkaliga association office in Bengaluru, he said, “I am from the ruling party, which prevents me from saying everything in public. But I promise I will raise the issue.” 
“When I was the CM, Nirmalanandanatha Swamiji fought to prevent a member of the Vokkaliga community from stepping down as the CM, in 2012,” he recalled.

During the winter session of the Parliament, “we will put pressure on the Union authorities regarding demands of the Vokkaliga community”, he said, claiming that the Kantharaj report has been distorted.