Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday said that the BJP and the RSS are against reservation and the progress of the Scheduled Castes/Tribes and Other Backward Castes in the country.
"BJP and RSS' ideology is against reservations. They never want SC/STs to progress. They are breaking the institutional structure. I want to tell SCs, STs, OBCs and Dalits that we will never let reservations come to an end no matter how much Modi Ji or Mohan Bhagwat dream of it," Gandhi told reporters here.
The Congress MP said this in reference to the Uttarakhand government's arguments in the Supreme Court, in a matter which dealt with the issue of the state government's duty to provide reservation in promotions for government jobs.
On Friday, the Supreme Court had said that reservation in promotions for government jobs is not a fundamental right, in connection with a case concerning the BJP-ruled Uttarakhand government.
"Reservation pinches their [BJP's] DNA. The real issue is that the RSS and BJP cannot stand the idea that the ST/SCs have been given reservation. The legal counsel on behalf of the Uttarakhand government had put forth these arguments in the court," Gandhi said.
On Sunday, the Congress party had asked the BJP to clear its stand on reservation for Scheduled Tribes and Scheduled Castes (STs and SCs) in government jobs and promotions.
The Congress party also questioned the recent judgement of Supreme Court in which the top court said the state governments are not bound to provide quotas to SCs, STs or OBCs in promotions and jobs in the state government.
"Uttarakhand government has taken a stand that state governments are not bound to provide reservation in promotions. The Centre had earlier went to the Supreme Court to challenge the Delhi High Court's judgement which said that reservations should not apply on promotions. The Centre is still pursuing that case in the Supreme Court," said Congress spokesperson Dr Udit Raj at a press conference here.
"The views of the Centre and the state government are, therefore, contradictory on this. The BJP should, therefore, clarify its stand on reservations to ST/SCs in jobs and promotions," he added.
Congress general secretary Mukul Wasnik said that his party disagrees with the Supreme Court's judgement.
( With inputs from ANI )