Now VP aims at quota in judiciary

The original architect of Mandal politics is set to fight for caste-based quota in the Parliament too, writes BR Srikanth.

The original architect of Mandal politics, VP Singh, declared on Tuesday his intention to fight for caste-based reservations in the Parliament as well as the judiciary. He said he would continue to drum up support for quotas for OBCs in the Parliament and the SC/ST and OBCs in the judiciary.

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At a rally organised by the All India Progressive Janata Dal (AIPJD) here, the former Prime Minister along with Ajit Singh, Raj Babbar and former Karnataka deputy chief minister Siddaramaiah moved five resolutions on quotas in education and employment.

Siddaramaiah, organiser of the rally, said, "If Premji and Narayanamurthy oppose the introduction of reservations in the private sector, we should not stop. We should bring an amendment to the Constitution and implement it."

Besides demanding 27 per cent quota for OBCs in the IITs, IIMs and the private sector, the rally also sought reservation of equal percentage of seats in both houses of Parliament for OBC candidates. As for reservations in high courts and the Supreme Court and co-operative bodies, the leaders did not specify the percentage of quotas.