Achi news desk-
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday fiercely targeted the Congress over the Muslim skepticism in Karnataka. He said that the Congress is advocating reservation on the basis of religion, which is against the Constitution. However, there are reports that the Chairman of the National Commission for Backward Classes, Hansraj Ahir, has taken notice of the issue and called on the Chief Secretary of Karnataka not to file the report on the inclusion of Muslims in the OBC category on the basis of religion. .
Prime Minister Modi alleged that the Congress had included Muslims in the OBC list in Karnataka ‘through the back door’. He said that the decision to declare all Muslims ‘backward’ in Karnataka is detrimental to the interests of the backward classes. He said that when the Constitution was being prepared, in order to protect the integrity and unity of the country, it was decided that there would be no segregation on the basis of religion.
The Prime Minister said, ‘Babasaheb Ambedkar, the creator of the Constitution, was against reservation on the basis of religion, but the Congress… betrayed him.’ He said, ‘Giving reservations to Muslims was illegal. This is a wake-up call for ABA communities across the country.
What did Karnataka government say?
On this, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah wrote, ‘It is true that Muslims in Karnataka are included in the 2B category for backward classes. It is not something that has just been done. This has been done on the basis of reports from district commissions. Reservations have been happening for the past three decades.
He said, ‘Neither the previous BJP government in the state nor the Narendra Modi-led central government, which has been in power at the Center for 10 years, raised questions on this issue. He did not challenge anyone including the BJP in court.
NCBC warning
Will he call upon the Chief Secretary of the State for the ‘excessive suspicion’ given to the Muslim community in Karnataka. The Chairman of the Commission gave this information on Thursday. The NCBC has criticized the Karnataka government’s decision to classify the entire Muslim community as a backward caste, saying such blanket classification undermines the principles of social justice.
NCBC Chairman Ahir said, “In Karnataka, all castes/communities of Muslim religion are considered socially and educationally backward classes and are included as a separate Muslim caste under Category II (B) in state list of back listed classes.
“This enables them to be reserved for admission to educational institutions and on vacancies in the state services in accordance with Articles 15(4) and 16(4) of the Constitution of India,” he said.
NCBC emphasized that there are indeed sections within the Muslim community that are disadvantaged and marginalized historically, but considering the whole religion as something backwards ignores the diversity and complexities within Muslim society. Ahir said that the response received from the state government on the matter was not satisfactory and that he would call the Chief Secretary of Karnataka to explain the move.
