New Delhi: Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi will flag his 'Save Constitution' drive and reiterate his commitment to raising the existing reservation cap of 50 per cent by addressing a social justice conclave in poll-bound Maharashtra’s Kolhapur on October 5.
The date of the social justice conclave is significant as the Election Commission is likely to announce election dates in Maharashtra in the first week of October. Besides, Haryana where Rahul has been flagging his social justice plank will have polling on the same day.
Kolhapur was chosen for Rahul’s event as its former King Rajarshi Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj, the descendant of iconic Maratha figure Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and the forefather of sitting Congress Lok Sabha MP Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj II, is fondly remembered by the locals as a champion of social justice as he had allocated 50 per cent reservation to the lower castes way back in 1902.
On October 5, Rahul Gandhi will address various civil society and community groups, who have been working among the weaker sections of society and flag the need for safeguarding the Constitution as well as reiterate his commitment to raising the 50 per cent cap of reservations, if needed.
The BJP had targeted Rahul Gandhi recently over his remarks related to reservation cap made in the US saying the Congress leader was against the quotas for Dalits.
“The Kolhapur conclave is significant as it will bring the focus back to Rahul Gandhi’s social justice campaign. The event is a succession of similar events that he had held in Prayagraj, Lucknow and Panchkula during the Lok Sabha election campaign. The situation of the marginalised groups is not good under the present government in Maharashtra and needs to be highlighted,” AICC national coordinator for SC, ST, OBC and Minorities K Raju told ETV Bharat.
The former Congress chief will also share his concerns over how the Maha Vikas Aghadi government headed by Uddhav Thackeray was toppled by the BJP in 2022 through unconstitutional means.
“The BJP has been twisting the remarks of the LoP recently. Hence, the same needs to be put in the correct perspective. He will also highlight how a duly elected MVA government was toppled by the saffron party in 2022 in violation of the federal system guaranteed under the Constitution,” AICC secretary in-charge of Maharashtra BM Sandeep told ETV Bharat.
According to party insiders, the shift of the Dalit vote bank away from the saffron party and towards the Congress during the parliamentary elections played a key role behind the 13 out of 48 Lok Sabha seats won by the grand old party, which emerged as the single largest group in the House.
The LoP may also unveil the statue of Maratha icon Chhatrapati Shivaji in Kolhapur on October 5 to send a message to the Maharashtra voters, days before the likely announcement of the election schedule. Earlier, the Congress had made a big issue over the falling of a Shivaji statue located in Rajkot Fort in Sindhudurg district.
The statue was unveiled by PM Modi in December 2023 in the presence of CM Eknath Shinde, Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar. The 35-foot-tall structure fell on August 26 raising questions over the faulty construction and the corruption involved in the project.
