Ammo for pro-backward claims

The Rajya Sabha had referred the Bill to the select committee headed by Bhupender Yadav of BJP

The Rajya Sabha select committee to study the constitution amendment Bill to grant statutory status to the National Backward Class Commission has held two meetings. The Rajya Sabha had referred the Bill to the select committee headed by Bhupender Yadav of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on April 11 during the Budget session of Parliament. In its first meeting on April 17, the committee decided to meet every Monday. However, some of the members have been absent from the two meetings. Sources say prominent absentees belong to parties that have historically championed the cause of the Other Backward Classes, or OBCs. At its national executive meeting in Bhubaneswar on April 15-16, the BJP had passed a resolution condemning these parties for not supporting the Bill. The absenteeism of some of the committee members is set to provide BJP with further ammunition to criticise these parties and their respective OBC leadership.