BJP-RSS flay PM for minority job share calls

New Delhi: The RSS and the BJP on Thursday flayed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for favouring “fair share” for minorities in government and private jobs, a call supported by the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD).

“This comment about ‘fair share’ is actually vote-bank politics. Fair share (for jobs) has to be based on merit and not religion,” said RSS leader Ram Madhav.

He also opposed the move to grant constitutional status to the National Commission for Minorities (NCM), saying the NHRC is already empowered to deal with complaints of rights violations of all kinds.

“We have even opposed the setting up of a separate commission to deal with minority affairs as we believe it’s an attempt to divide the country on minority and majority lines. We oppose granting it a constitutional status as well,” Madhav said.

Interestingly, the bill to grant a constitutional status was moved in parliament in January last year, with the NCM then headed by Tarlochan Singh, an NDA appointee, pressing for its early passage.

In his comments, BJP spokesman Prakash Javadekar accused the Prime Minister of attempts to promote religion-based reservations by favouring “fair share” for minorities in government and private jobs.

“The Prime Minister is actually advocating religion-based reservations on the pretext of favouring fair share for minorities in jobs. We oppose it. It was religion that became the cause of the country’s partition,” he said.

But BJP ally Shiromani Akali Dal welcomed Singh’s comments, saying they should be translated into practice.

“It is delayed, but a welcome comment about fair share for minorities in government and private jobs. But we would like to see that the government translates this sincerely into practice,” SAD secretary-general Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa said.