The agitation by the Patel (Patidar) community in Gujarat is being taken as a signal by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) to ask for a relook at the entire question of reservations in jobs.
VHP joint general secretary Surendra Jain told The Hindu that rather than propping up the 22-year-old leader of the Patel reservation agitation, the VHP wanted a situation where reservations on the basis of caste is done away with.
The VHP has a very clear stand, and even the framer of the Indian Constitution held the same view that reservations could be allowed for a few years after which they should be revisited. “We feel, after watching this agitation, that the government should set up a commission under the supervision of the Supreme Court and examine the whys and wherefores of reservations. Maybe restrict it to reservations on the grounds of economic deprivation only,” he said.
Mr. Jain added that one demand for reservations always leads to another as was witnessed by demands for reservations for Jats and Gujjars in Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, respectively. “If every community asks for it, we need to re-examine the entire issue. Unfortunately, in our country there are many political parties which base their entire politics on such demands,” he said.
BJP MP from Karnataka C.T. Ravi posted similar views on Twitter.
“[The] Supreme Court should immediately intervene on the reservation [issue] and ensure that our future doesn’t have to be divided on caste basis,” he tweeted.
Mr. Jain denied that Hardik Patel had any link with the VHP after pictures of him, with a gun in tow, posing next to the international working president of the VHP, Praveen Togadia, surfaced on social media.
“There are pictures of Hardik Patel with Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal as well,” he said.
