 "Congress protests caste remarks against Rahul, seeks apology from BJP")
The Congress in Maharashtra on Thursday held state-wide protests against the BJP over its Lok Sabha MP Anurag Thakur's controversial remarks making apparent reference about Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi's caste in Parliament.
Thakur's comments on Gandhi were an insult to Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and OBC communities, said the opposition party. State Congress president Nana Patole sought an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP over the comments.
Talking to reporters in Mumbai during the protest, Patole said, "Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi is raising his voice for the rights of backward communities. He has been demanding a caste-based census.
In retaliation, a BJP MP asked Rahul Gandhi about his caste in the Lok Sabha." "By asking about his caste, the BJP not only insulted Rahul Gandhi but also disrespected SCs, STs, Nomadic Tribes and OBC communities," contended the Congress leader.
Patole said not only are Congress workers outraged by the questioning of Gandhi's caste, but there is anger against the BJP within backward classes. Congress workers took to streets on Thursday and staged protests across the state, condemning the BJP's "Manuwadi" attitude, he said.
Despite facing insults and abuses, Gandhi is determined to continue fighting for the rights of backward communities and will press for his demand for a caste-based census in the country, Patole maintained. It is a serious matter that PM Modi has supported Thakur's comments, he argued.
Asked about the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA)'s August 7 meeting on seat allocation for the upcoming assembly polls in Maharashtra, the Congress MLA insisted no formula on distribution of segments in the 288-member house has been decided among the opposition bloc's constituents.
The Congress, the Shiv Sena (UBT) and the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) are part of the MVA. On August 4, AICC in-charge Ramesh Chennithala will arrive in Mumbai and hold discussion with the committee of Congress leaders formed for seat allocation.
Following this, a meeting of the MVA will be held on August 7, where seat allocation will be discussed, he said. Criticising the Shiv Sena-BJP-NCP government, the Congress leader alleged that under its watch, the state's law and order situation has deteriorated rapidly. "Recently, the car of an MLC from the ruling party was attacked.
Today (August 1), the car of an opposition MLA was attacked.
Even MLAs are not safe in the state. Devendra Fadnavis is the most inactive and weak Home Minister the state has ever had," opined Patole. There is immense pressure on lower-ranking police officers from their seniors and the home minister, he claimed.
The Congress leader criticised the appointment of senior IPS officer Rashmi Shukla as the Director General of Police and demanded her resignation and that of Fadnavis for the "breakdown" of law and order in the state. Replying to questions, Patole welcomed the Supreme Court's verdict on sub-classification within SCs, but expressed doubts whether the BJP-led NDA government will implement this ruling.
The BJP-led government at the Centre is attempting to end reservations for SCs/STs by imposing a creamy layer limit similar to that existing for OBCs, the Congress legislator maintained. In a landmark verdict, the Supreme Court on Thursday held that states are constitutionally empowered to make sub-classifications within the SCs, which form a socially heterogeneous class, for granting reservation for the uplift of castes that are socially and educationally more backward.