Samastipur (Bihar): Slamming the Congress over "vote bank politics", Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday said that the Muslim reservations provided by the Congress in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka will be abolished after Bharatiya Janata Party is voted to power in both these states.
Addressing a public rally in Bihar's Ujiyarpur on Monday, the Union Home Minister alleged that the Congress gave reservation to Muslims by reducing the quota for SCs, STs and OBCs in Karnataka and Andhra.
"Congress put obstacles in the reservation of backward class people. In Karnataka, they formed government and overnight, without conducting a backward class survey, the Muslim community was included in the backward community and they were given a 5 per cent reservation. Congress reduced the 5 per cent reservation of backward communities and gave it to Muslims. When BJP will form government in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, we will end this reservation of Muslims," Shah said.
In Karnataka, for example, Muslims had a 4 per cent sub-quota within the 32 per cent OBC quota, which the Basavaraj Bommai government in 2023 redistributed among Vokkaligas and Lingayats.
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In Andhra Pradesh, as per the 2011 census, Muslims constitute about 9.5 per cent of the population.
In Andhra, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other prominent BJP leaders have categorically stated that the BJP will not give reservation to Muslims based on religion, contradicting his stance, his ally, Chandrababu Naidu, from the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) has promised to preserve the 4 per cent reservation for the Muslims under the OBC category in the state.
Amit Shah, however, continued his attack on the Opposition over a range of issues, including alleged corruption.
Amit Shah also lashed out at the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) led by former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Yadav and the Congress for not attending the Pran Pratishtha ceremony at Ram Temple in Ayodhya held earlier this year.
"RJD's Lalu Prasad, Congress always opposed construction of Ram Temple in Ayodhya. RJD and Congress leaders did not attend Pran Pratishtha ceremony of Ayodhya Ram Temple because of vote bank politics," he added.
He also said that the cash recovered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) from a person who sources said worked as the house help of Sanjiv Lal, the personal secretary (PS) to Jharkhand minister Alamgir Alam, proves that the leaders of the INDIA bloc are "corrupt".
"Cash recovery in Jharkhand proves INDIA bloc leaders are corrupt," Shah added.
Amit Shah was addressing the rally in Bihar's Samastipur to gather support for Nityanand Rai, the Union Minister pitted by the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections.
Nityanand Rai is contesting against Alok Mehta of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). Besides Ujiarpur, HM Amit Shah will also campaign for NDA candidate Shambhavi Choudhary. She is contesting from the Samastipur (SC Reserved) seat on the Lok Janshakti Party-Ram Vilas (LJPR) ticket.
—ANI