Govts deliberately targeting Mala community: Mala Mahanadu
Dalit groups allege conspiracy behind SC sub-categorisation
Bhadrachalam: A press meet held in Bhadrachalam on Saturday witnessed sharp criticism from Leaders of the Mala community described the ongoing Scheduled Caste (SC) sub-categorisation exercise as “the largest political conspiracy against Dalit unity in India’s history.”
Addressing a press meet here on Saturday, Dr RS Rathnakar, National President of Mala Mahanadu and ROCKS, alleged that the Central and State governments of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh were deliberately targeting the Mala community under the guise of SC reclassification.
Dr Rathnakar argued that the move, which he said first began as an experiment in Punjab and Haryana under a Congress government, had now been expanded nationwide under the BJP-led Union government.
According to him, SC sub-categorisation in Telangana and Karnataka proved that political parties were consciously dividing Dalits for electoral gains.
Claiming that the policy of sub-categorisation benefits a very small segment within the SC list, he questioned how the Central government planned to distribute benefits across 1,108 SC communities nationwide, and how the Telugu states intended to split just four reservation seats among 59 SC communities.
“This is not social justice; this is a direct attack on Dalit unity,” he said.
He criticised Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, alleging that both leaders were using the Mala community as a political tool while failing to address concerns raised by Mala representatives.
He also questioned why, despite alleged discrimination, “Mala elected representatives remain silent,” accusing some leaders of being loyal to political parties rather than to their own community.
The Mala Mahanadu president said the community was now facing one of the most challenging periods in the history of the Telugu states, adding that the community’s socio-political presence had eroded significantly in recent years.
He called upon Mala youth, employees, and social organisations to stand up peacefully and constitutionally against the sub-categorisation process.
