• Source:JND
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Supreme Court SC/ST Verdict:  Coming in opposition to the recent Supreme Court verdict on Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes sub-classification, the Congress party on Saturday demanded the reservation to continue as long as untouchability remains in the country. Talking to reporters today, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), claiming that the saffron party wants to do away with reservation.

Congress's stand comes days after many other parties, including the Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party, Lok Janshakti Party and Samajwadi Party expressed similar disapproval of the landmark SC verdict.

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A seven-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court ruled on August 1 that the Scheduled Castes do not constitute a socially homogenous class. In the landmark 6-1 majority ruling the apex court had allowed the states to sub-classify the SCs and STs to provide reservation to less privileged among them. Out of six favouring judges, four favoured excluding the creamy layer from the SC/ST quota.

Speaking with the reporters on Saturday, Congress President and Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge said: "...This shows the BJP's intention of ending the reservations. On one side they have privatised the public sector jobs. There are a lot of vacancies, but they are not recruiting. SCs and STs are not able to get jobs. No SCs are at the high-level positions. They are trying to suppress the SCs and STs by classifying them in creamy layers... As long as there is untouchability in this country, the reservations should be there," quoted ANI.

A few days after the Supreme Court suggested that the "creamy layer" should be excluded from the scope of Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) reservations, the Union Cabinet rejected the proposal on Friday. The Cabinet highlighted that "there is no provision for a creamy layer in SC/ST reservation" within "the Constitution framed by B R Ambedkar."

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