OBC quota in medical courses; DMK, BJP claim 'victory'

New Delhi: As Tamil Nadu's ruling DMK is chalking out a campaign across the state to highlight the efforts it undertook to get the 27 per cent reservation for Other Backward Communities (OBC) for admission to undergraduate and postgraduate courses in medicine, BJP leaders have claimed that the Union government's decision will help the party in the Assembly polls in five states scheduled next year.

On Thursday, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare decided to provide 27 per cent reservation to OBCs and 10 per cent reservation to EWS in the All India Quota (AIQ) scheme for medical courses.

The BJP believes the decision will further help the party consolidate its presence over the 40 per cent OBC votebank in Uttar Pradesh. The saffron camp is also focusing on non-Yadav OBCs, who form around one-third of the state's population.

Meanwhile Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, in a meeting with party functionaries on Friday, claimed that the Union government was compelled to take a decision on OBC reservation in admission to UG and PG medical courses because of the "relentless struggle" undertaken by the DMK.

According to an IANS report, Stalin told party leaders that a campaign has to be undertaken in all districts to create awareness among the people on the measures taken by the DMK for OBC reservation in medical colleges under the all India quota.

He also asked party leaders to call a meeting of the district secretaries and other office- bearers at the district level in the near future to start a grassroots campaign in this regard. He said that the people of the state should be made aware that it was on the basis of a case filed in the Madras High Court by the DMK that the court had delivered a historic verdict to provide reservation for OBCs under the all India quota.

According to Stalin, DMK was continuously raising the demand in Parliament and to the Union Health Minister for 27 per cent reservation for OBCs in medical college admissions. The Chief Minister told the party functionaries that this has to be highlighted during the campaigns that the party would take up in the near future.

On the other side, an IANS report quoted a BJP senior party leader from Uttar Pradesh saying that the Union government's decision will help the party get support from both the OBC and EWS category in the poll-bound states.

According to him, as OBCs have a decisive presence in Uttar Pradesh and the decision will help the party win their support along with other people-centric measures of the Narendra Modi and Yogi Adityanath-led governments.

The BJP's commitment for 'Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikash' is visible in the decision," he was quoted saying. He also claimed that except Yadavs, who are believed to be the supporters of the Samajwadi Party, all the other OBC communities will come in support of the BJP.

The report also quoted national president of the BJP's OBC Morcha, K. Laxman saying that finally we have  government which is committed to provide due reservation to the backward and EWS categories.

BJP believes that the decision taken on Thursday will benefit about 5,550 OBC and EWS students every year..