BJP, prime minister committed to OBC's welfare: Sushil Kumar Modi

Senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi on Tuesday asserted that most of the steps for welfare of Other Backward Classes have taken place whenever his party was in power in Bihar or at the Centre.

Senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi on Tuesday asserted that most of the steps for welfare of Other Backward Classes have taken place whenever his party, or its previous avatar the Jana Sangh, was in power in Bihar or at the Centre.

The former deputy CM made the averment while talking to reporters on the sidelines of a programme held here by the BJP OBC Morcha.

The Rajya Sabha member's comments came in the backdrop of strong demands for a caste census by adversaries as well as allies like Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD(U), which have been triggered by the Centre's statement in the Parliament that enumeration of only SCs and STs was proposed.

The first time OBCs in Bihar got the benefits of reservations was when veteran socialist Karpoori Thakur headed the government in the state with Jan Sangh stalwart Kailashpati Mishra as one of the most powerful ministers, Sushil Modi pointed out.

It was not until the NDA came to power in Bihar in 2005 that OBCs got their due in panchayat polls. The previous RJD government had held elections to village bodies without implementing the quotas, said the BJP leader, who held the deputy CM's post till a year ago.

Modi also asserted that the central government has come out with measures like quotas in medical entrance exams, Kendriya Vidyalayas, Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas and military schools.

The PM hails from the extremely backward classes and rest assured his government will continue to work for the social segment.

Parties like the RJD and its ally, the Congress, must explain why they failed to do anything for the OBCs despite enjoying power for so long, he added.

Sushil Modi, who has been a bete noire of RJD supremo Lalu Prasad and his family, was also asked about the contention of the latter's son and heir apparent that governance in the state was suffering on account of bureaucratic high-handedness.

We all have been witness to how the bureaucracy functioned when Lalu was at the helm of affairs. IAS officers were made to carry his spittoon. Is this how the RJD expects the bureaucracy to be treated? he asked with trademark acerbity.