Incensed at the silence of Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati over reversion of Dalit officers on the Supreme Court’s order,the Arakshan Bachao Sangharsh Samiti plans to gherao the residences of the former Chief Minister, her close aide Satish Chandra Mishra and other party leaders.
Arakshan Bachao Sangharsh Samiti (ABSS) convenor Avadesh Verma, who is leading the campaign for restoration of reservation in promotion for Scheduled Caste government employees, said the dates of the gherao would be announced soon.
In 2008, the Mayawati government had vigorously pursued the policy of reservation in promotion for the Scheduled Caste government officers and employees. The policy had resulted in out-of-turn promotions to over 15,000 Scheduled Caste officers and employees, who superseded their batch mates and even seniors in UP Power Corporation, PWD, Irrigation and several other departments.
“Mayawati claims to be the sole messiah of Dalits and downtrodden sections of society. She will have to prove her credentials by taking up the cudgels on behalf of the Dalits state employees who are being demoted in large numbers. The Dalits employees are neither slaves nor pocket borough of a party or leaders. We will support that party which stands by us in our hour of crisis. So far no party has spoken in our favour and we are spearheading our agitation on our own strength,” Verma said.
He added that all political parties maintaining silence over this most pressing issue of the Dalit community would face the consequences in the 2017 state Assembly elections.
The ‘Chuppee Todo’ (break your silence) agitation of the Dalit employees against the 56 MlAs of the Samajwadi Party and 16 MPs of the BJP from the reserved constituencies has already unnerved the law-makers of both the parties.
Senior BSP leader and leader of opposition in Assembly, Swami Prasad Maurya, blamed the Bharatiya Janata Party, the Samajwadi Party and the Congress for the plight of the Dalit employees.
“It is not the BSP, but the BJP ruling at the Centre, the SP ruling in the state and the Congress which claims to represent the Dalits, that owe an answer to the Scheduled Caste employees being demoted. The BSP can do little in the lok Sabha as it has no member in the lower House of Parliament,” Maurya said.
“For restoration of reservation in promotion for Dalit employees, the United Progressive Alliance-II government had in 2013 got the Constitution (117th Amendment) Bill, 2013 from the Rajya Sabha. The Bill is still alive as it was passed by the Upper House which is never dissolved. If the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government has any concern for the Dalits, it should bring the Bill in the lok Sabha, where they have clear majority,” Maurya said.
On the party’s silence on this issue, the BSP leader said: “There is no point in our making any demand. It is for those paying lip service to the Dalits to come forward and mount pressure on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to get the Bill passed in the lok Sabha.”
The Allahabad High Court had quashed the state government’s order of 2008 providing consequential reservations in promotion to SC officers and employees. A special leave petition was filed against the HC order in the Supreme Court but the apex court upheld the high court decision in April 2012, clearing the decks for reversion of the promoted Dalit officers and employees. later, the apex court had set the deadline of September 15 for demotion of all those promoted under quashed policy.
==========