India’s home minister vows to end Muslim reservation if his party wins

India’s home minister has said that if his incumbent Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is voted to power, it will end the reservation of Muslims, the largest minority of the country.

Speaking at a rally in the state of Telangana amid ongoing general elections, Amit Shah on Thursday vowed to deprive Muslims living in Telangana of their 4% reservation and would redistribute it within the Other Backward Classes (OBC), Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) communities instead.

“I want to tell the people of Telangana that the BJP has decided to end the reservation for Muslims initiated by the Congress and BRS (Bharat Rashtra Samithi, a political party active mostly in Telangana) and instead give it to SC/ST and OBC,” Shah said while addressing the cheering crowd at Siddipet.

In Telangana, Muslims instead of having a distinct religious reservation, have a reservation that is no different, but rather included within the backward classes reservation quota.

The Indian reservation system, an affirmative action, promises representation in education, employment, government schemes, scholarships and politics for minorities and marginalized groups.

According to the provisions outlined in the Indian Constitution, the Union Government and the States and Territories of India have the authority to establish reserved quotas or seats for "socially and educationally backward citizens" in various domains such as Education Admissions, Employments, Political Bodies, Promotions, and more.

The SC, ST, OBC are officially designated groups of people and among the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups in India.

Tension flares in India after Modi's anti-Muslim hate speech amid elections

India

Shah was in Telangana for gaining support for the BJP and its candidate from Medak, Raghunandan Rao, who is fighting for a seat at the Lok Sabha constituency, the lower house of the Indian parliament.

“You make Modi Prime Minister for the third term. Narendra Modi will liberate Telangana from this corruption,” Shah said at the rally.

Shah’s statement against Muslims and attack on the Congress party, India’s main opposition party, comes days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi was accused of using “hate speech” against Muslims, after he referred to the Muslims of his country as “infiltrators”.

On Sunday, while addressing a crowd at a rally in the western state of Rajasthan amid ongoing elections, Modi claimed that if the Congress, is voted to power, “they will gather all your wealth and distribute it among those who have more children, to the infiltrators,” an apparent reference to Muslims.

Following his hate speech, Modi faced mass criticism globally, as people urged the authorities at the country’s electoral body to ban him from participating in elections for damaging the harmony among religious communities.

His Sunday speech marked the first time Modi directly targeted Muslims ever since he held office in 2014, as usually he uses indirect remarks or leaves it to his other members to do the dirty job.

Known as the world’s biggest political party, the BJP was founded in 1980 on the lines of the ideology of the far-right Hindu nationalist volunteer paramilitary organization, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), which is a staunch advocate for converting India into a Hindu nation.

The BJP is renowned for its members making religious and Islamophobic slurs and genocidal calls from stages against the minorities of India, especially the Muslims.

Its members are also known for spreading misinformation and lies about the country’s situation and about Muslims, amongst its majority Hindu vote-bank, especially during election seasons.

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