Kapus are one of the dominant castes in Andhra Pradesh. They are seen as one of the biggest communities in the combined state and the divided state as well. Despite the big population, the majority of members of the community are poor and that's why the demand for Reservations for the community started a few decades back.
Since the 90s the Movement has been going on. However, the demand was not achieved due to various reasons. A few leaders like Chegondi Venkata Harirama Jogaiah and Mudragada Padmanabham actively took part in the movement. But the demand is still going on. Now the movement is back in the news.
Chegondi Venkata Harirama Jogaiah who has been fighting for the demand for a very long time filed a writ petition in the High Court. The petition might come up for hearing in a few days. Kapus are hoping that the petition would end their long wait.
But the question is whether Ch. Harirama Jogaiah can achieve the demand and give Kapus a big relief. We will get clarity on this in a few days. Once the hearing starts, Mudragada and others might present the data proving that Kapus need reservation given their economical status.
Chegondi Venkata Harirama Jogaiah earned a name as a strong fighter for the demand. After Vangaveeti Moahana Ranga's death he quit the Telugu Desam Party alleging Chandrababu Naidu's role in this. Despite having a close association with TDP's Founder chief NTR, he quit the party.
Unlike Mudragada, Chegondi has been fighting for the Kapu reservation no matter which party is in power. So everyone is eagerly waiting to see if he can achieve the long-wait demand now.
It has to be mentioned here that the previous government led by Telugu Desam Party passed a bill that says that Kapus will get a reservation of 5 percent. However, the bill was not implemented. YS Jagan Mohan Reddy who supported the Kapu reservation when he was in opposition changed his stand. The YCP said that reservations should be given based on poverty and not the community. Recently Chegondi started a protest and brought the issue back into the news.
