Mayawati slams Modi govt for delaying reservation in promotions

BSP president Mayawati today accused the Narendra Modi government of delaying the implementation of reservation in promotions for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, saying that the Supreme Court had always held it constitutional.

"The Supreme Court has always held reservation for SCs/STs in promotions as constitutional but the complexities in its implementation had rendered it ineffective, especially in Uttar Pradesh, for which a constitutional amendment was brought in the Rajya Sabha, she said.

But it is a matter of regret that it is pending in the Lok Sabha for the past four years," she added.

Reacting to a Supreme Court decision yesterday, Mayawati said that like the previous Congress government, the BJP government led by Modi is not ready to shun its casteist attitude.

"It is because of this that despite all agreeing on the matter the constitutional amendment bill it is not being passed by the Lok Sabha and like the Lokpal Bill, this issue has also been kept pending," the Bahujan Samaj Party leader said in a press release.

Alleging that like the Congress, the BJP government has been working to gain cheap publicity, Mayawati said their record of doing concrete work for the welfare of the SCs, STs and Other Backward Classes was "very poor".

She said they invoke Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar's name for Dailt votes, but have no problem in making his followers a target of their casteist mindset.

The Supreme Court yesterday allowed the Centre to go ahead with reservation in promotion for employees belonging to the SC and ST category in "accordance with law".

The top court took into account the Centre's submission that the entire process of promotions had come to a "standstill" due to the orders passed by various high courts, and the apex court had also ordered "status quo" in a similar matter in 2015.

The government said there were separate verdicts by the high courts of Punjab and Haryana, Delhi and Bombay on the issue of reservation in promotion to SC/ST employees.

The apex court had also passed different orders on appeals filed against those judgements, the government had argued.