By L. Venkat Ram Reddy
Copyright deccanchronicle
Hyderabad: The extended Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting held in Patna on Wednesday, attended by Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, has decided to showcase the “Telangana model” of social justice as a winning strategy for the Congress-RJD-led Grand Alliance in the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections.Deputy chief minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, ministers N. Uttam Kumar Reddy and Damodar Rajanarasimha, TPCC president B. Mahesh Kumar Goud, and AICC Telangana in-charge Meenakshi Natarajan also participated in the meeting, which discussed the Telangana experience at length. Party sources said that the Congress high command deliberately chose Patna as the venue to replicate the Telangana template. In September 2023, the Congress had convened an extended CWC meeting in Tukkuguda, Hyderabad, just two months before the Telangana Assembly elections. The meeting culminated in a massive rally where Sonia Gandhi unveiled the party’s “Six Guarantees,” a campaign plank that galvanised public support. Soon after, the Congress scored a decisive victory over the decade-old BRS regime, leading to Revanth Reddy’s elevation as the Chief Minister. The leadership now hopes to replicate the same momentum in Bihar. The Telangana model, according to sources, remained the central theme of the Patna meeting. The CWC lauded the Telangana government for conducting a caste census within its first year in office, fulfilling an electoral promise. It also praised the passage of two legislations providing 42 per cent reservations for OBCs in education, employment, and local bodies. Other measures such as the sub-categorisation of Scheduled Castes and the decision to observe February 4 as “Social Justice Day” were described as pioneering steps in ensuring social justice. The Grand Alliance in Bihar is placing social justice and caste census at the core of its electoral pitch, drawing direct inspiration from Telangana. TPCC chief B. Mahesh Kumar also highlighted Telangana government’s social justice initiatives in the meeting. Speaking in the CWC meeting Goud said that Telangana had set a national benchmark in the fight for OBC rights. He credited Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra for bringing unprecedented public support for social justice causes. Goud said the Telangana government had acted swiftly to provide 42 per cent reservations for BCs in education, employment, and politics, setting an example for the entire country. He added that this success was a result of the vision shown by Rahul Gandhi and the efforts of Revanth Reddy, Bhatti Vikramarka, and the state Cabinet.
