RSS raises quota issue before Uttar Pradesh polls

NEW DELHI: In remarks reminiscent of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s on the eve of the Bihar elections, the organisation’s propaganda secretary Manmohan Vaidya has said that reservations are given on caste basis to Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes as they were discriminated against for centuries and efforts should be made to do away with “bhed-bhav.”

When asked about his remarks, made at the Jaipur Literature Festival on Friday, Vaidya told ET: “I said there has been social discrimination for centuries against some backward castes and hence reservations were given to the SC/ST categories, which is fine.

I also said that as long as there is such social discrimination, reservation should be given to SC/ST. But all efforts should be made to remove this social discrimination.” When asked why he did not mention about reservations to Other Backward Castes, the RSS leader said, “the question posed to me (at the Lit fest) was on SC/ST so I spoke only on these two.”