Congress, two BJP allies voice opposition to quota ruling

The Supreme Court has said in a judgment that the government is not bound to provide reservation for appointments and promotions to public posts, and courts cannot give directions compelling states to reserve jobs or positions for SCs and STs.

The Congress and two constituents of the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) — the Lok Janshakti Party and the Janata Dal (United) — expressed their disagreement on Sunday with the Supreme Court’s decision on the issue of reservation in appointments and promotions.

Addressing mediapersons in Bengaluru on Sunday, Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge said that the Supreme Court’s February 7 judgment has left the marginalised communities “worried”. (File photo for representation)

While the Congress alleged that rights of Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) are not secure under the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) rule, the LJP and JD(U) sought immediate measures from the Union government in order to ensure that reservation benefits for SCs, STs and backward classes remain unchanged.

The Supreme Court has said in a judgment that the government is not bound to provide reservation for appointments and promotions to public posts, and courts cannot give directions compelling states to reserve jobs or positions for SCs and STs. It also said that an individual does not have a fundamental right to claim reservation, and it is for the government to decide whether reservations are required in appointments and promotions.

Addressing mediapersons in Bengaluru on Sunday, Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge said that the Supreme Court’s February 7 judgment has left the marginalised communities “worried”.

“The ruling has worried marginalised communities. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) have been trying to get reservations scrapped for a long time,” he said, urging the Centre to “wake up” and file a review petition.

Kharge accused the Uttarakhand government of not having the intention to help the weaker sections as it did not argue in favour of reservation.

Addressing a news conference at the party headquarters in Delhi, Congress general secretary Mukul Wasnik said the party will raise the issue in Parliament. “We respectfully say that we do not agree with this decision. The rights of SCs and STs are not secure under the BJP government,” Wasnik said.

“We believe that the appointment of SCs/STs to government posts should not be at the discretion of governments. It is the fundamental right conferred by the Constitution,” he said.

Congress spokesperson Udit Raj said that the matter shows the “BJP is basically against” Dalits and reservation.

LJP president Chirag Paswan took to Twitter to express his party’s disagreement. “The LJP does not agree with this decision of the Supreme Court...The party demands that the Union government take immediate measures to ensure that the reservation provision continues in jobs and promotion in the same they have been so far,” he posted.

JD(U) national general secretary and spokesperson KC Tyagi said his party would urge the government to bring an Ordinance in the ongoing session of Parliament to ensure that the system of reservations in promotions in government jobs to SCs and STs continues. “We will urge the central government to pass a resolution in Parliament on this issue in the current budget session,” he said.

LJP founder and Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan called a meeting of SC/ST parliamentarians on Monday. “I have invited the SC/ST members of Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha at my residence on February 10,” he said.

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) spokesperson Manoj Jha echoed Tyagi’s views. “The central government must file a review petition against the verdict as otherwise it shall undermine the idea of social justice and shall give a regressive direction to the same,” Jha said.

Bihar BJP spokesperson Nikhil Anand said that his party is committed to the welfare of all sections of the society.

“We are committed to the welfare of all sections of the society, including SC/ST. It is not proper to react on opinion expressed by the judiciary without studying it properly. But our party is not averse to any idea of subaltern emancipation within the framework of constitutional provisions. The motto of BJP is ‘Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikas and Sabka Vishwas’,” Anand said.