Mumbai: NCP (SP) president Sharad Pawar urged the BJP-led Centre on Friday to bring a constitutional amendment to increase reservation in education and government jobs beyond the existing cap of 50%.
“Currently, the cap on reservation is 50%. But if Tamil Nadu can have 78% (quota for various communities), why can't Maharashtra have 75% reservation,” Pawar asked while responding to a query by media persons at Sangli.
“Everyone has this feeling that reservation should be given. There is nothing wrong with it. But while doing this, it should also be kept in mind that the reservation that other people are getting should also be protected. It should not be harmed in any way… According to the current form of reservation, reservation above 50% cannot be given and if it has to be taken beyond 50%, the law will have to be changed,” he said.
The Centre should take the lead and bring a constitutional amendment to raise the quota cap, he said adding, “We will support the amendment.”
Meanwhile, the statement has not gone down well with the Shiv Sena, a constituent of the Mahayuti in Maharashtra. Party spokesperson MLA Sanjay Shirsat asked why Pawar could not get the reservation issue resolved when he was in the government. “Why Pawar was raising the issue just before the state assembly elections and demanded to know what he had done to get the matter resolved during his stint as the chief minister,” he asked.
Prakash Ambedkar, chief of Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) criticised Pawar terming the demand as a sign of his intellectual bankruptcy.
To a question regarding the seat-sharing talks between Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) partners, Pawar said it will continue next week. “I would only advise the leaders to conclude the talks as early as possible so that we can go to the people, who are looking for a change,” he said.
Pawar congratulated the Union government for granting classical language status to Marathi. “The state government must be concerned about the dwindling number of students opting to learn Marathi and the closure of Marathi language schools in the state,” said the leader adding, discussions on such issues were needed.
When he was asked about Union Minister Gadkari's claim that he had been offered the PM's chair by the opposition multiple times, Pawar said, “We did not make any such offer. If we don't have the required number of MPs, how can we make such an offer?”
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About Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visits to the state ahead of the assembly polls, Pawar said the PM addressed 18 rallies before the Lok Sabha elections and lost in 14 constituencies. For assembly elections too, he should address many rallies, he quipped.