After Lok Janshakti Party’s opposition to the Supreme Court verdict validating the sub-classification in Scheduled Castes reservation, the Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party has raised its voice over the judgment.
BSP president and former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, Mayawati, on Sunday, said that her party does not agree with the decision of the apex court as any sub-classification among the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes was not right.
“The sub-classification of people within Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) has been permitted, our party does not agree with it at all,” Mayawati said while addressing a press conference here on Sunday.
She said that it was not right to hear the decision of 20 years ago in the case of Punjab state. Also, it would not be a right decision to divide the sub-castes among the SCs and STs. The decision of the Supreme Court is like a plan to end reservation, she added.
Mayawati also raised questions on the criteria of creamy layer. Along with this, she said that there should be no attempt to change the reservation in future and it should be included in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution.
Warning the Scheduled Castes, Mayawati said that understanding the emergency situation, the SC-ST class needs to unite. If they remain divided, the opponents will take advantage of them, she added.
Earlier this week, the Supreme Court ruled that states have the constitutional authority to create sub-classifications within the Scheduled Castes, a socially diverse group, to provide reservations aimed to uplift castes that are more socially and educationally disadvantaged.
“Because the atrocities faced by the people of SCs and STs have been faced as a group and this group is equal in which it would not be right to do any kind of sub-classification,” Mayawati said.
The Lok Janshakti Party has also raised its objection to the decision of the apex court. In a post on X, LJP (Paswan) shared its disapproval of the Supreme Court verdict on sub-classification within the SC and ST communities.
“Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) is not in favour of the Supreme Court’s decision on reservation in sub-categories for SC-ST categories. The party’s founder Padma Bhushan Ram Vilas Paswan had also been demanding that as long as there is a practice of untouchability against the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in society, there should not be any provision for reservation in sub-categories and creamy layer for SC-ST categories,” the party wrote in Hindi.
LJP chief and Union minister Chirag Paswan, on Saturday, announced that they would file a review petition in the case to reverse the Supreme Court decision.
Meanwhile, Mayawati is chalking out her party’s strategy for the UP assembly by-elections. She would take feedback from zone-wise officials and has called a meeting on August 11 to finalise the preparations for the bypolls. BSP state office-bearers, chief zone in-charges and district presidents will attend this meeting, in which the strategy for the by-elections will be discussed.
Along with this, the panel of candidates for the by-elections has also been prepared and submitted to the BSP headquarters. Shivbaran Pasi has been appointed in-charge for the Phulpur assembly seat in particular.
Mayawati has also directed the formation of booth-wise committees, which will work as an important part of the election strategy. During the meeting, Mayawati will give guidelines for the by-elections as well as reveal the party’s election strategy. Her nephew Akash Anand and brother Anand Kumar will also be present in this meeting, and play an important role in the party’s election preparations and planning.
