Reservation hike for Lingayats, Vokkaligas is only election lollipop, says Congress

MYSURU: Congress general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala and Karnataka Congress president D K Shivakumar on Wednesday claimed that the Supreme Court will strike down the 2 per cent reservation announced for the Lingayats and Vokkaligas, stating that it was only an election time lollipop offered by the BJP government in the state.

Addressing a joint press conference, Surjewala said the reservation will be struck down in the Supreme Court and added that the 2 per cent hike in reservation for Lingayats and Vokkaligas will go and that Vokkaligas will revert back to the 2A category. “Ultimately, none of these groups will get the reservation”, he said while questioning Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on why they could not substantiate their stand in court.

Shivakumar said the BJP has proved that it is not worthy of people’s trust and had dipped its hand in a hornet’s nest during the election season. “I want to ask Amit Shah if they have any commitment. Are Lingayats and Vokkaligas beggars? Reservation should be given on the basis of population, but the BJP snatched the reservation from minorities and fooled the Lingayats and Vokkaligas. After May 13, this government will go and the Congress will form the government. The BJP will get 40 seats and we will get 150 seats, I can write this in blood”, he said.

The two leaders also posed a set of nine questions to the BJP questioning why the party had ‘deceived’ Lingayats, Vokkaligas, SC and STs, why the government did not justify the reservation in the Supreme Court and did not file an affidavit, why the government is hesitant to cross the 50 per cent ceiling limit among others.