Race to backwardness: Congress, BJP are misusing constitutional provisions

The Congress government in Karnataka has placed the proposal before the BJP-led central government for official recognition

With the election cycle gathering speed, the two main political parties in the country are putting up an unfortunate exhibition of petty politics. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath, smarting from a shock defeat in the crucial Lok Sabha by-elections of Gorakhpur and Phulpur, announced last week that his government was considering providing quotas within existing quotas to the most backward classes (MBCs) and Maha Dalits (the most backward among Dalits) in government jobs. His aim is simple: Wean away voters from the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party, which have traditionally represented the other backward classes and the scheduled