New Delhi: In the Parliament today, Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker M Thambidurai questioned the need for the 10% reservation proposed by the Centre for economically weaker people under general category and highlighted that this bill was driven by false logic. He reiterated that his party and the Dravidian movement believes in social justice and requested to first look into raising the reservation upper limit to 70%.
New Delhi: In the Parliament today, Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker M Thambidurai questioned the need for the 10% reservation proposed by the Centre for economically weaker people under general category and highlighted that this bill was driven by false logic. He reiterated that his party and the Dravidian movement believes in social justice and requested to first look into raising the reservation upper limit to 70%.
Economically poor people should receive economic help
He went on the elucidate extensively the need for social reservation and not economic reservation. He highlighted the fact that the BJP government and the previous Congress governments have launched so many schemes to alleviate people from impoverished backgrounds. He named a few like the Mudhra loan scheme, housing for the poor schemes, employment schemes, help in fees in higher education etc.
Listing out several schemes available for the economically deprived, he noted that
the economically weaker sections under general category are already getting enough benefits through several programmes. This economic-based reservation is only required when the government accepts that their schemes have failed.
He stressed "Why do need a separate reservation? Does this mean your existing programmes are not properly implemented”.
Social justice is why need reservation
He cited the example of Ambedkar as a Shudra who was highly educated and yet faced tremendous discrimination. “Though Ambedkar was highly-educated, still he was humiliated based on his caste. That is why the forefathers of our Constitution took social justice as a criteria and not economy.” He reminded everyone that it was the Dravidar Kazhagam of Thanthai Periyar that put forward reservation first in the country and it was not based on economic status as people from weaker castes are not equally treated due to the caste system. So long as the caste system remains, this lack of balance has to be adjusted with social equity programs like reservation and it is definitely not based on the economic status.
Getting an economic certificate is easier than getting a caste certificate
Thambidurai said that the proposed bill on reservation will only increase corruption as people will start bribing to show they’re economically impoverished to avail of reservation from the government. He pleaded that this bill should be done away with and rather 69% reservation such as the one TN government has been requesting for so long should be immediately tabled if the government is serious about reservation.