Cong-led K'taka govt creating confusion over internal reservation, claims BJP

Bengaluru, Oct 30 (IANS)The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday accused the Congress-led Karnataka government of creating confusion and delaying the implementation of internal reservation for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in the state.

Former Deputy Chief Minister and BJP MP Govind Karjol alleged that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s government has adopted a policy of “delay and deception” in handling the internal reservation issue, which he said has been a long-pending demand for justice among marginalised communities.

Speaking to the media at the BJP’s state headquarters, Jagannath Bhavan, Karjol said: “For the past 30 years, there has been a consistent demand to implement internal reservation among Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government took the initiative to deliver justice to 101 communities fighting for social equality. It has been one year and three months since then, but the Congress government is deliberately dragging its feet."

He accused the state government of acting with “malicious intent” to revoke the existing internal reservation order.

“By the time the Belagavi Assembly session begins on December 8, cases will have been filed in the Supreme Court and the High Court, leading to the cancellation of the internal reservation order. This is precisely what Siddaramaiah’s government wants,” Karjol alleged.

He further charged that the government has been issuing “flawed and contradictory” orders, thereby denying justice to Scheduled Caste communities.

“When a case challenging the Siddaramaiah government’s order came up in the High Court recently, no representative from the government appeared. This negligence led to a partial stay on the order,” he said.

“The Siddaramaiah government does not want to protect the interests of the 101 communities. The Chief Minister is playing politics to appease one particular community while ignoring the rest,” he claimed.

Karjol also criticised the state government’s handling of public finances, saying it was using the financial crisis as an excuse to delay recruitment. “The treasury is empty, and the government is not ready to make new appointments. They think delaying recruitment will help them politically,” he alleged.

He further said the Congress government was attempting to deceive Dalit communities once again by holding a Cabinet meeting on the issue while simultaneously preparing to table a draft Bill. “By November 5, the government must submit its explanation before the High Court. Instead of resolving the issue, it is creating more confusion,” he said.

“The Congress has always believed Dalits and the oppressed should not progress. For 79 years, they have treated Dalits merely as a vote bank and want to continue doing so for the next 100 years. This is the despicable mindset of the Congress,” Karjol charged.

He also criticised the Social Welfare Department, claiming it had failed to prepare adequately to defend the case.

“The Congress government has ignored the reports of Justice Nagamohan Das and Justice Sadashiva -- both appointed by them -- as well as the Cabinet Sub-Committee report prepared under former minister Madhu Swamy during our tenure,” he said.

--IANS

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