Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Aug 31: The United Forum of presidents from various OBC (Other Backward Classes) castes and communities in Jammu and Kashmir made an urgent appeal to their constituents to leverage their voting power against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the upcoming Assembly elections.
The appeal was made by the OBC leaders during a press conference held, here today. The leaders accused the BJP of failing to fulfill promises made to the OBC communities during the 2014 Assembly elections.
Among the speakers were Kewal Fotra, president of All J&K Sain Samaj, Mohan Lal Pawar, general secretary of All J&K OBC Mahasabha, Faquir Chand Satia, president of AIBCF J&K unit, Kasturi Lal Basotra, chairman of OBC Mahasabha, and Balwant Katria, general secretary of AIBCF. They outlined the pressing concerns of the OBC communities in J&K, which include their lack of representation in the State Assembly, the non-implementation of a 37% reservation quota in Government services and educational institutions, and the absence of OBC representatives in the OBC Commission.
The leaders criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi for not delivering on his promises made to the J&K OBCs during the last Assembly elections in 2014. These promises included the implementation of a 27% reservation in J&K Government services and educational institutions as per Mandal Commission report. They also cited the lack of representation of OBCs in Municipal Corporations, Committees, and the Panchayati Raj System as per their population.
Furthermore, the leaders expressed their disappointment with the BJP Government’s actions following the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019, and the conversion of J&K into a UT on October 31, 2019. They highlighted that despite these significant changes, the BJP continued to uphold the Reservation Act of 2004 and the State Reservation rules framed under SRO 294 of 2005, which were initially established under Article 370 by previous governments.
The Forum urged the OBC communities in J&K to remember these unfulfilled promises and alleged discrimination when casting their votes in the upcoming elections.
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