MAY CONSIDER QUOTA FOR MOST BACKWARD SECTIONS: YOGI
LUCKNOW: In a major political move aimed at weakening the support base of likely SP-BSP alliance ahead of 2019 Lok Sabha elections, chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Thursday announced that his government would consider giving reservation to the most backward castes (MBCs). “We are considering giving reservation to “Ati Pichhra” (the most backward among the other backward classes) and “Ati Dalit” (most deprived among the Dalits). A committee is being constituted (to make recommendations). Those who deserved to get the benefits of reservation have remained deprived. We are generating jobs for them,” said chief minister.
LUCKNOW: In a major political move aimed at weakening the support base of likely SP-BSP alliance ahead of 2019 Lok Sabha elections, chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Thursday announced that his government would consider giving reservation to the most backward castes (MBCs).
“We are considering giving reservation to “Ati Pichhra” (the most backward among the other backward classes) and “Ati Dalit” (most deprived among the Dalits). A committee is being constituted (to make recommendations). Those who deserved to get the benefits of reservation have remained deprived. We are generating jobs for them,” said chief minister while intervening in the debate on general budget in the state assembly here.
Yogi’s announcement comes close on the heels of BJP’s efforts to strengthen the party’s base among the MBCs and making forays into the support base of likely SP-BSP alliance.
The BJP’s recent defeat in the by-election to Gorakhpur and Phulpur Lok Sabha seats has forced the leadership to work on socio-economic agenda.
The BJP’s Sankalp Patra for 2017 assembly elections though did not make a direct mention of the move, the party leaders talked about it in their poll campaigns. Senior BJP leader and union home minister Rajnath Singh as state chief minister in 2001 had decided to implement “quota within quota” for the MBCs.
A social justice committee led by former minister late Hukum Singh was constituted to make the recommendations after a caste census. Yogi obviously targeted the caste support base of the SP and BSP saying “We will do away with domination of certain castes (in reservation).”
Yogi was referring to his government’s requisition to give four lakh government jobs and decision to scrap interviews in class three and four jobs, when a member of opposition said there was a move to scrap reservation.
Yogi immediately countered the member saying his government instead is planning to give reservation to “Ati Pichhra” and “Ati Dalit” the most backward castes. There were slogans of “Yogi Adityanath Maharaj Ki Jai” when Yogi referred to irregularities in the UPPSC recruitments during the previous regime and said his government would end discrimination among the youths. “A (CBI) probe is going on and those who had been taking bribe of Rs 40 lakh and Rs 60 lakh for a job in UPPSC recruitments will go to jail,” he said.
Chief minister referred to killing of a member of Nishad community to make his point that the Samajwadi Party led government was anti-reservation saying, “You (SP government) killed Akhilesh Nishad when Nishad’s were demanding reservation in Gorakhpur,” he said.
Yogi said his government, however, was able to change perception about the state and this became evident at UP Investors Summit 2018 where MoUs for investment of Rs 4.68 lakh crore were signed.
“If all the MoUs were implemented, 33 lakh new jobs would be created,” he said. His government would implement the MoUs for Rs 25,000 crore within this month and more MoUs for a similar amount next month,” he said.
The chief minister also targeted the opposition — mainly the SP regime — for leaving behind empty coffers.
He said, “We cannot make UP a bankrupt state. We have enforced financial discipline and the state’s indebtedness was only 29.8 percent of state’s GDP against 30.5 percent allowed by Financial Responsibilities and Budget Management (FRBM) Act.” Yogi said his government would make no difference among the investors and a sum of Rs 1400 crore had been earmarked in the state budget to honour commitments made to investors in pursuance of policies of previous SP and BSP governments.