Ahead of UP polls, cabinet clears 4.5% quota for minorities

NEW DELHI: The competition for Muslim votes in Uttar Pradesh intensified on Thursday, with the Congress getting the Union Cabinet to carve out a 4.5% sub-quota for minorities from within the existing 27% for OBCs in central jobs.

During a recent meeting with the rector of Darul Uloom Nadwatul Ulema, Maulana Rabey Hasani Nadwi, Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi had promised swift action on the Centre’s assurance for providing reservation to backward Muslims.

Sensing a resentment among the OBCs over their shrinking share has already prompted the government to promise a similar sub-quota for the most backwards among the OBCs. This is seen as a mature strategy as bulk of the benefits of reservation goes to the upwardly mobile Yadavs and Kurmis.

The MBC quota promise could help Congress bring within its net Nishads, Rajbhars, Mauryas, Lodhs, Kushwahas, etc, who account for close to 60% of the OBC population. Incidentally, Congress has been aggressively wooing this section by awarding them assembly tickets. In Bihar, Nitish Kumar undertook a similar experiment and reaped rich electoral dividends.

Kumar reserved seats for MBCs in local bodies. In the last assembly polls, the MBCs repaid their gratitude by voting en masse in favour of the NDA. The non-Yadav OBCs had backed Mayawati in the last poll to the UP assembly.

But they started deserting BSP after the elections as the spoils of power went to Mayawati’s caste brethren of Jatavs and Brahmins.

In the power structure, the MBCs have been repeatedly denied their share. Their natural inclination is to gravitate towards forces that can contain the Yadavs and to some extent the Kurmis — who walk away with the biggest share of benefits for the backward community.