Union Minister Ramdas Athawale advocates 75% reservation in government jobs
New Delhi: The reservation ceiling in government jobs should be increased from 50 to 75 per cent, said Ramdas Athawale, Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment, on Friday. “The reservation given to Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST) and OBCs should remain intact at 50 per cent. There are many other castes who are also demanding reservation. Of the 50 per cent of the general category, 25 per cent reservation should be for these castes,” said Athawale at a press conference here.
He said: “The state government should increase the amount to promote inter-caste marriage from existing Rs 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh. The Central government gives Rs 2.50 lakh to promote inter-caste marriages.
“There are 20,500 people still engaged in scavenging work in Jharkhand. There is a plan to provide Rs 50,000 assistance to each family involved in the scavenging work.” Besides, he said efforts are on to increase the reservation for “Divyangs” (differently abled) from existing four per cent to five per cent in government jobs.
“Our government is not anti-Dalit. The SC and ST Act has been formulated not for misuse but to help the people from SC/ST communities. The Act is also not against the upper castes.” Athawale said that efforts are being made to rename the Mumbai Central railway station as Baba Saheb Ambedkar Station. He also enumerated the work done by his government for the welfare of people.
Courtesy: indianexpress.com
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Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
