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NT Bureau
Chennai, Apr 24:

        Chief Minister M Karunanidhi today urged the Central government to intervene and take appropriate steps on the reservation issue before the pent-up anger of the oppressed people erupts like a volcano.

        Responding to a special call attention motion brought by all the parties including the opposition AIADMK, Karunanidhi said that he had written a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi to call for a joint session of parliament to discuss the Supreme Court stay on 27 per cent OBC reservation in the elite educational institutions. 'It is bad for democracy that the destiny of 100 crore people is decided by just two people,' Karunanidhi said and added that all the leaders in the House who spoke on the discussion expressed the same opinion in different ways wherein reservations should be safeguarded.

        'Reservations for the backward classes has faced many problems since it came into force during the Justice Party rule in the State. Even the first Constitutional Amendment was made with regard to reservation due to the movement led by Periyar with the influence of former Chief Minister K Kamaraj at the Centre'.

        Referring to the Rs 9000 slab fixed by former Chief Minister M G Ramachandran for reservation on the basis of economic criteria, Karunanidhi said that there was a debate during MGR regime whether reservations should be based on social backwardness or economic status. The cap of Rs.9000 to identify the economically backward was arrived at. Political parties including the DMK, the DK and the CPI opposed the move which finally forced MGR to change his stance and revert to the old form of reservation.

        Karunanidhi said that yesterday PMK founder S Ramadoss spoke to him over phone and sought his support to launch a movement against the stay. He (Karunanidhi) said that he told Ramadoss that a time would come to launch the movement.