Hyderabad: The Telangana government on Wednesday decided to convene the Legislative Assembly on April 16 to pass a bill to increase reservation for STs and the backward classes among Muslims.

Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao told media that the state cabinet would meet on April 15 to decide the percentage of reservations and will also set up Backward classes commission for minority and SC, ST commission. "On April 15, it will be decided how much per cent is to be given to STs and BC-E (category). We don't call them Muslims (BC-E) anymore," he said.

In an apparent reference to the BJP's opposition to provide reservation to Muslims, the chief minister said the government is not proposing to give reservation on the basis of religion. He further said that the government is only seeking to raise the percentage of reservations currentlly being availed by backward sections among muslims in Telangana.

Around 90 per cent of the population in the state belongs to SC, ST, BC and minorities, so the government decided to increase the reservation, he said. "The increase can be anything up to 12 percent. We are also looking at increasing ST reservations up to 12 percent," he added.

The state government would urge the central government to help in the implementation of its decision, as it was done in case of Tamil Nadu in 1990s, as total percentage of reservation would go beyond the cap of 50 percent, he said. "We are copying Tamil Nadu as it is because the Centre took the request up, gave assent and put it in the 9th Schedule. We are asking the Center to do the same," Rao said. He said the Supreme Court had permitted increasing quotas to STs beyond 50 percent.

The Telangana government would go to Supreme Court to give a direction to the Center in the event of the Center not accepting the move, he said. There cannot be different laws for different states, he added.

Recalling that the TRS had promised to increase the quotas for minorities and STs in its election manifesto, Rao said the state government is only seeking to implement its promise.