Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Credit: PTI Photo
New Delhi: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday claimed that the Congress would snatch away the reservation of backward classes and give it to Muslims if it came to power in Haryana, where Assembly elections are due later this year.
Shah accused the Congress of ignoring the recommendations of the Kalelkar Commission as well as the Mandal Commission regarding reservations to the backward classes.
"The Congress snatched reservation from backward classes in Karnataka and gave it to Muslims. If the Congress forms the government, they will do the same in Haryana too," Shah claimed while speaking at the 'Backward Classes Samman Sammelan' at Mahendragarh in the state.
"Congress has always been against the backward classes. In 1957, the Kaka Kalelkar Commission was formed for OBC reservation, but Congress did not implement it for years. In 1980, Indira Gandhi shelved the Mandal Commission. When it was introduced in 1990, Rajiv Gandhi opposed OBC reservation by giving a speech for 2 hours and 43 minutes," Shah said.
He added that only the BJP cared for OBCs and said that 27 of 71 cabinet ministers are from backward classes.
The Haryana Assembly elections are due later this year. After being in power for two terms, the BJP is looking at a tough challenge from the Congress. In the recent Lok Sabha polls, the Congress won 5 of the 10 seats in the state; in 2019, the BJP had swept all the seats.