BJP ally Chandrababu Naidu promises 4% Muslim reservation in Andhra
BJP ally Chandrababu Naidu promises 4% Muslim reservation in Andhra
Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief and former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Sunday reiterated his stand of giving four per cent reservation to the Muslim community in the state.Â
“From the beginning, we are supporting a four per cent reservation for Muslims and that will continue,” Chandrababu Naidu said while speaking to reporters in Dharmavaram.
The TDP chief’s assertion comes days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during an election rally in Telangana’s Zaheerabad, said that he would not let the quotas of Dalits, Adivasis and Other Backward Classes (OBCs) be given to Muslims based on religion.
Chandrababu Naidu’s TDP is a part of the NDA coalition formed in Andhra Pradesh to contest Lok Sabha elections against the ruling YSRCP led by Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. Actor-turned-politician Pawan Kalyan’s Jana Sena is also a party of the NDA coalition.Â
However, the NDA partners’ joint manifesto did not mention four per cent reservation for Muslims, as announced by Chandrababu Naidu two days prior to that.
The former Chief Minister also said that there was an anti-YSR-Congress sentiment in Andhra Pradesh, claiming that his party is poised to win the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in the state.Â
He also claimed that the NDA will secure 24 out of 25 Lok Sabha seats in Andhra Pradesh in the general elections and 160 seats in Assembly polls. The southern state will go to polls on May 13 and the counting of votes will be held on June 4.
The manifesto’s standout feature was the introduction of the “super six”, a set of ambitious proposals aimed at addressing key societal challenges. Among these proposals are a monthly pension of Rs 1,500 for women aged 19 to 59, the creation of 20 lakh jobs for youth, or alternatively, providing Rs 3,000 monthly unemployment assistance, and the provision of free bus travel for women.
Last week, Chandrababu Naidu had also said that as soon as the alliance comes to power in Andhra Pradesh, financial aid of Rs 1 lakh will be extended to Muslim pilgrims who visit Mecca.
“Soon after the NDA comes to power in the state, Rs 1 lakh financial assistance will be extended to every Muslim who visits Mecca on the Haj pilgrimage,” Naidu had said during the interaction with the Muslim community.
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