Telangana’s political game hinges on reserved stakes

HYDERABAD: Telangana has 19 SC reserved seats and 12 for STs in the 119-member legislative assembly and three SC reserved seats and two ST seats out of 17 parliamentary constituencies. Though a discussion on reservations has never been a major election theme in the past, it has now become a major poll issue.
Electoral trends have shown that the party which wins a majority of reserved seats in the assembly goes on to form the govt.In the Dec 2018 assembly elections, BRS won 16 SC reserved seats and 12 ST seats and went on to form the govt with a big majority.

In 2014, BRS gained around 10 SC and 10 ST seats and formed the govt. In the Nov 2023 elections, Congress won a majority of SC and ST seats and formed the govt.
When Andhra Pradesh was a combined state, political parties would go all out to woo the Dalit vote-bank. TDP was always gunning for BC votes and not necessarily preferred SC votes. Similarly, the BJP now has a similar equation of attracting OBCs and STs. But, the saffron party is also attempting to capitalise on the promise of SC categorisation to enlist Madiga supporters, who outnumber Malas in Telangana.
During the 1990s, the TDP promised SC categorisation and even issued a GO, which was later overturned by the Supreme Court. During its govt for two terms, the BRS passed two assembly resolutions in favour of SC categorisation and passed it on to the Centre.
Unlike the TDP and BJP, the BRS enjoyed the support of Dalits due to their involvement in the Telangana statehood agitation. On the other hand, Congress has long been the preferred choice for Dalits.