The ruling SP government has rejected the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) proposal of the sub-categorisation of communities within the 27 per cent quota for the ‘Other Backward Classes’. 

Earlier, southern states have implemented the process prompting the NCBC to ask the UP government’s opinion. However, the UP government is in fact wary of the Centre’s move as the Assembly polls in the state are not far away. And not without reasons. In fact, the most backward and extremely backward communities among the OBCs had overwhelmingly voted for the BJP in the Parliamentary polls of May 2014. The BJP bagged 73 out of the total 80 lok Sabha seats from UP and ultimately formed government at the Cente. To thwart the NCBC’s alleged efforts to drive a wedge among the OBCs, the UP government has come up with a counter. 

It has asked the Centre to survey Scheduled Castes to ascertain the numbers who have benefitted as they have been availing benefits of reservation much before independence.”

The government further said: “The Centre is keen on dividing the quota for OBCs in three categories —- backward, most backward and extremely backward, even as their quota in state and Central services is hardly two decades old.’’

In 2001, the then BJP government in UP, led by Rajnath Singh, had initiated a move setting up a `Social Justice Committee’ for ensuring quota within quota for the Most Backward Castes among the OBCs and the Dalits. Both the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party had opposed the move terming it a conspiracy to divide the deprived classes.

The BJP’s reason was simple. It claimed that  80 per cent of the SCs and OBCs, who constitute the most backward sections of both categories, have been deprived of the benefits of quota. In fact, the fruits were reaped largely by dominant castes like Yadavs in OBCs and Jatavs in SC. Even the UPA-II government in March 2014 had initiated a similar move which has been taken forward by the NDA regime. The NCBC after deliberations have prepared a report relating to the process within the OBCs.  Chairman of UP OBC Commission Ram Asrey Vishwakarma (himself an MBC) said: “We have written to the NCBC that UP is not interested in the idea. We cannot do it as the government has no data on caste-wise population among the OBCs. Also we do not have the status on implementation of reservation for OBCs in government departments and agencies. The BJP has always acted arbitrarily in cases pertaining to OBCs like it was seen during Ram Prakash Gupta and Raj Nath Singh’s tenure,” he said.