Uttar Pradesh Minister Asim Arun on Friday expressed anger over Leader of Opposition of Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi's remarks on reservation made during his America visit and demanded his immediate resignation, along with an apology to the country's Schedule Caste (SC) community.
Arun stated, “As a leader of a political party and the leader of the opposition, it is reasonable for Rahul Gandhi to criticize the government or the BJP, but criticizing the country itself is unforgivable,” adding that the Congress's stance against reservations is not new.
“They had also opposed the 1956 report by Kaka Kalelkar, and the then Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, rejected the report in 1961, writing to all the Chief Ministers to not implement reservations,” he alleged.
Northwest Delhi BJP MP Yogendra Chandolia mentioned that before the Lok Sabha elections, the opposition accused the BJP of planning to end reservations. “But the public did not fall for this and voted BJP into power for the third time. Whenever reservations are discussed, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar will be remembered. The removal of Article 370 has benefitted the residents of Kashmir, and the Valmiki community, which was previously confined to sweeping jobs, is now pursuing medical and engineering studies,” he said.
Chandolia mentioned that after the Lok Sabha elections, when the opposition leader waved a four-page booklet in Parliament, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made it clear that as long as the NDA government is in power, reservations will not be harmed in any way. “Congress is not only against reservations but also against Dr. B.R. Ambedkar,” he asserted.
“Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir had prevented the people there from benefiting from reservations. However, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has worked to end this. The Congress party's views on reservations have emerged time and again, with Rajiv Gandhi in 1985 saying that reservations promote “idiots,” opposing the Mandal Commission in 1990, and favoring Muslim reservations,” he said.
The MP added that this is despite Dr. B.R. Ambedkar clearly stated that reservations should not be granted based on religion.
SC Morcha Delhi President Mohan Lal Gihara said, “The Delhi BJP SC Morcha strongly opposes Rahul Gandhi's statement, and an FIR has been filed against him at the Punjabi Bagh police station.” He demanded legal action against Rahul Gandhi and assured that they will take his anti-SC views to the masses, alongside a protest scheduled for Saturday.
