BJP cites Bengal govt decision to accuse opposition of appeasement politics

New Delhi, Aug 22 (PTI) The BJP on Thursday fired a fresh salvo at the opposition over its "appeasement" politics, as it cited the West Bengal government's decision to include many Muslim castes in the OBC category within a day of such a proposal being made to accuse the INDIA bloc parties of harming the interests of backward classes.

Union Minister Bhupender Yadav said the decision to snatch away the rights of Hindu Other backward Classes for "minority appeasement" must be condemned.

The Congress governments in Telangana and Karnataka like the Trinamool Congress dispensation in Bengal are denying the OBCs their rights to provide the Muslims reservation benefits, he claimed in remarks to the media.

Citing an affidavit of the Bengal government in the Supreme Court, the BJP leader said 75 of the 77 castes included in the OBC category hailed from the Muslim religion. He named several Muslim castes and added that they were added to the OBC list on the same day a proposal was made.

It is clear that the laid down rules by the OBC Commission to carry out a comprehensive study of the backwardness of a caste before taking a decision on including it in the backward category were not followed and the state government showed surprising haste in according them benefits, Yadav said.

While the opposition parties harm the interests of backward classes, they speak in support of caste census, he said, adding it is just a matter of politics for the INDIA bloc.

Can such an injustice to the OBCs be part of policy, he wondered, accusing the opposition of violating the spirit of the Constitution. PTI KR AS AS