Reservation Hatao Andolan: Why Is It Drawing Both Support And Opposition?

A new issue-based online campaign is rapidly gaining traction, with a group calling itself the Reservation Hatao Andolan (RHA) amassing 5.6 million followers on Instagram within days of its launch.

The group's Instagram account, under the username @reservationhatamovement, has 122 posts and describes itself in its bio as being "backed by citizens discarded by reservation politics, driven by merit."

The campaign's rise follows the month-long Cockroach Janata Party (CJP)-led Gen Z protests over irregularities in the NEET examination, and comes amid a broader wave of social media-led campaigns around public policy issues.

What Is RHA

The group's X account carries a slogan in its bio saying "Educate-Agitate-Organize," along with the Hindi line "Sari jaati ek samaan, mera bas yeh desh mahaan" (all castes are equal; only my nation is great).

In a recent post, RHA listed its core demands, including merit over caste, equal fees, equal age limit, and equal cut-off, signalling a push to remove caste as a factor in admissions and public examinations, per a post on its X account.

The group has also outlined a broader policy proposal. It says that if the goal is to eliminate caste-based discrimination, the government should stop requiring or recording caste identity in public life altogether, including a call to make the "showcasing" of caste illegal, and to stop mandating caste declarations on government forms, admissions and employment applications.

RHA describes its long-term goal as "One Nation. One Identity. Indian," and its proposal is titled "Remove Reservation. Remove Casteism."

The group claims to have no political affiliation. In another Instagram post its said, "We are not affiliated with any political party." It further added that they had hoped that a change in government would bring major reforms in the education system, but the BJP failed to do so.

"Our conclusion is simple: this issue can not be reduced to party politics. Our focus is on the policy, not the party. This is a citizen-led movement, independent of every political party," the group said in the post.

The Criticism Towards The Movement

Along with the growing followers, the movement itself has become the centre of significant social media backlash. Many users and creators are pointing out the existing caste-based discrimination in various parts of the country.

Critics argue that the movement ignores the deep-rooted hierarchy and ongoing discrimination in Indian society. They highlight that reservation is a constitutional tool meant to correct centuries of denial of necessities, including education, land, resources and human dignity faced by SCs, STs and Other Backwards Classes (OBCs), rather than just poverty-alleviation.

Other Campaigns Emerge After CJP Protest

RHA's emergence follows a similar pattern seen after the success of the CJP-led protest. A day after Dharmendra Pradhan resigned on July 25 following sustained student-led demonstrations, another campaign called the E20 Janata Party surfaced online, adopting language, branding and protest style associated with the CJP movement.

That group is demanding that consumers get the option of buying 100% petrol alongside ethanol-blended fuel, and has sought the resignation of the Union Road Transport and Highways Minister over the government's ethanol policy, according to News18.

That campaign has reportedly gained further backing, with the Delhi Taxi and Tourist Transporters and Tour Operators announcing a protest march to Parliament on August 4 against E20 petrol.