NAGPUR: Launching a scathing attack against Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government for “failure” to defend OBC reservation in the local body polls, leader of opposition in assembly Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday challenged its ministers to hand over the reins to BJP so that it can restore the quota within four months.
“It’s high time the MVA ministers either restore 27% OBC reservation in all local bodies or step down.
If we (BJP) fail to restore the reservation, I will retire from politics,” he said while addressing a large number of protestors at Variety Square during launch of BJP’s statewide Chakka Jam over the issue.
Fadnavis was later detained by Sitabuldi police and released after some time.
On the other hand, Congress leaders under MLC Abhijeet Wanjari staged protests at Dr Ambedkar Square at Wardhaman Nagar against the BJP-led Central government and blamed it for Supreme Court’s decision to cancel the OBC reservation.
Wanjari said similar protests were staged in the entire state on the call given by Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee president Nana Patole.
“In the last 5-6 years, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government has ignored our repeated demands for handing over caste-wise Census data.
The British had conducted a caste-wise census in 1931.
The BJP was in the government from 2014-19 in the state but never made an effort to get the caste-wise OBC data from the centre,” said Wanjari.
Fadnavis, accompanied by BJP city chief Pravin Datke and former state minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule, charged MVA ministers with doling out false promises and failing to constitute a backward-class commission for the last 15 months.
“While the Supreme Court has asked for empirical data, state leaders are misleading the people that census data is needed.
Instead of collecting data, they are blaming the centre for their own failures,” said Fadnavis.
The former CM added that while OBC reservation is maintained in the entire country, it was cancelled in Maharashtra only due to apathy of the coalition government.
“On the birth anniversary of Chhatrapati Rajarshi Shahu Maharaj, who sacrificed his life for betterment of all communities, a decisive battle has been launched today across the state by BJP for OBC reservation.
We will force this government to restore reservation and till then the BJP would continue its agitation on the streets,” said Fadnavis.