Petition asks Rahul Gandhi to press for wider representation on Kerala planning board

Representatives of several communities have petitioned Rahul Gandhi over what they described as inadequate social diversity in Kerala’s recently reconstituted State Planning Board. The petition was submitted to Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha. Its signatories included representatives of Backward Classes, Dalits and Other Backward Classes, who asked him to seek corrective steps.

They said the composition of the board did not adequately reflect constitutional values of social diversity, inclusion, equal opportunity and professional excellence. The petition called for appointments to consider both expertise and broad social representation. According to the memorandum, Kerala has many qualified professionals from varied social backgrounds, including academics, administrators, scientists and social thinkers.

It said experts from Backward Classes, Muslim and Dalit communities had historically been inadequately represented and were absent from the current board. The petitioners also said that none of Kerala’s distinguished women scholars and economists had been included. They argued that this was a concern because the State Planning Board is responsible for long-term development planning and policy-making.

The signatories said social justice and representation were inseparable from India’s democratic and constitutional values. They urged Gandhi to have the board’s composition examined objectively and to pursue measures that would improve representation. The source material did not include a response from Gandhi, the Kerala government or the State Planning Board.

It also did not identify individual members of the reconstituted board or specify the number of appointments the petitioners sought to change. The petition therefore presents the concerns of its signatories rather than an independently verified assessment of the board’s composition. Its central request was that future or corrective appointments should combine professional competence with wider social representation.