10% political reservation sought for tribals

Vijayawada: Vadithya Shankar Naik, former member of the AP State ST Commission and founder and national president of Girijana Praja Samakhya, has demanded 10 percent political reservation for tribal communities in the upcoming local body elections in Andhra Pradesh.

Addressing a press conference in Vijayawada, Naik said tribal communities had not received political representation proportionate to their population despite several decades of Independence. He demanded that the deficiencies in the existing 6 percent reservation for tribals in local bodies be comprehensively rectified and that reservation be enhanced to 10% based on the current tribal population ratio.

Naik said tribal communities continued to face inadequate representation in key elected positions at the village, mandal and district levels, including Sarpanch, MPTC, MPPS, ZPTC, ZP chairperson, corporator and mayor.

Naik asserted that political representation was a constitutional right and said the struggle for 10 per cent reservation would continue through democratic means. He said awareness would be strengthened among tribal communities from villages, Thandas and Gudems to mandal and district levels.

State president K Raju Naik, State secretary K Ravi Naik, State youth president Islavath Hanumanthu Naik and several tribal leaders and activists attended the press conference.

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The Hans India