Blatantly illegal: BJP on Karnataka govt's decision on quota for minorities under housing schemes

Siddaramaiah

The BJP on Thursday termed the Karnataka government's decision to enhance the reservation percentage for minorities under various housing schemes "blatantly illegal and unconstitutional", and accused the ruling Congress in the state of stealing the rights of Hindus to "feed" its vote-bank politics.

"This is brazen. Blatantly illegal and unconstitutional. There can be no reservation on the basis of religion. The Constitution is unambiguous on this," BJP's IT department head Amit Malviya said in a post on X.

The Congress government in Karnataka is hell-bent on pushing religious quotas to appease its vote bank, he alleged.

"This isn't governance, it's dangerous social engineering. Congress is determined to sow the seeds of division, polarise communities, and rip apart the social fabric of Karnataka -- all for short-term political gain," Malviya said, adding, "Karnataka deserves better." The Karnataka cabinet on Thursday decided to enhance the percentage of reservation for minorities under various housing schemes in the southern state from 10 to 15 per cent.

Talking to reporters after the cabinet meeting, state Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil said, "Under various housing schemes being implemented by the housing department across the state in both urban and rural areas, it has been decided that the reservation for minorities will be enhanced from 10 per cent to 15 per cent." He said the decision was taken after observing the high number of homeless people among minorities in the state.

Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) national spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari termed the Karnataka government's decision unconstitutional.

"Stealing the rights of Hindus to feed vote-bank politics. This is not 'Government for all' -- it's 'Government for one community'," he said in a post on X.

"Rahul Gandhi and Siddaramaiah's only work is to indulge in blatant corruption and appeasement," Bhandari said.