Not Cong, BJP wants to end reservation; their manifes to copy-paste job: Hooda

The former Haryana chief minister said ahead of the assembly elections that the state’s ‘36 biradri’ were with his party

Agencies New Delhi: Former Haryana chief minister and senior Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda has hit back at the BJP’s charge that the grand old party is planning to end reservations in the country, and said it is the saffron party that wanted to win 400 seats in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections to change the constitution and thereby end reservations. In an interview to The Wire ahead of the Haryana assembly elections, where Hooda is fighting from his stronghold of the Garhi Sampla-Kiloi constituency, the former two-term chief minister said: “Who was talking about changing the constitution? BJP leaders said ‘give us 400 seats [in the Lok Sabha elections] so the constitution can be changed’. Changing the constitution means removing reservations”. BJP leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi have alleged on the Haryana election campaign trail that if the Congress is voted to power, it will end reservations.

The BJP’s attack follows Lok Sabha leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi’s remarks in the US earlier this month, where he stated, “We will think of scrapping reservation when India is a fair place, and India is not a fair place.” Referring to his father, Ranbir Singh Hooda, a freedom fighter who was also a member of the constituent assembly, Hooda said how the Congress could oppose reservations when it was the party that had provided them in the first place.

“The founders of the constitution gave us reservations, and I am proud that along with Babasaheb Ambedkar, my late father [Ranbir Singh Hooda]’s signature is also there. How can we speak of removing reservations? The Congress is the one that has provided reservations,” the former chief minister said. While the Congress has not announced a chief ministerial candidate, Hooda, who is seen as the frontrunner, accused the BJP of producing a “copy-paste” manifesto and said that the people’s mandate including all of Haryana’s “36 biradri” (communities) were with the Congress. Hooda also denied the existence of a rift within the Haryana Congress and asked the BJP to focus on keeping its “own house in order” after Sirsa MP and prominent Congress Dalit face Kumari Selja’s notable absence on the campaign trail following the distribution of tickets, over which Hooda is believed to have held sway.About 70% of Haryana’s population is engaged in farming.

Farmers from Haryana have been protesting for a long time demanding MSP on all crops. You have promised to provide a legal guarantee for MSP, but how will you persuade farmers that you will implement this? They have faith in us. We will bring a legal guarantee for MSP in Haryana. Rahul Gandhi has already been raising this at the central level. We will put in all efforts to provide MSP on the basis of the recommendations of the Swaminathan Commission.Since you have spoken about women wrestlers, the Congress has given a ticket to Vinesh Phogat. Was this your decision? No, both Bajrang Punia and Vinesh met Rahul Gandhi. When she had all but secured the silver medal and was going to compete for the gold, I believe that she did not receive proper guidance. It was under a conspiracy that she could not get her gold medal.

At that time, when I saw her statement and her disappointment, I even said to the BJP that she was disappointed and should be nominated to the Rajya Sabha. We don’t have the required MLAs, otherwise we would have nominated her. I said to the BJP that she should be nominated to the Rajya Sabha so her hurt feelings could be healed. But they did not [do so].