Lucknow: The Yogi government in Uttar Pradesh is likely to propose a special job quota for the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in a bid to woo voters from the community ahead of the Lok Sabha elections in 2024. Sources said discussions were being held to come up with the requisite numbers related to the reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in all the 84 departments.
Sources said the heads of the departments have been asked to draw up the reservation scheme for their respective departments on the proposed reservation scheme which will help absorb the intended OBC beneficiaries as desired by the Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. The exercise would also see enumeration of all the OBC employees and those from other castes.
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A senior government official said the government will be utilising the enumeration in its policy making as it would lay-bare the representation of all the backward castes in the government machinery. The recruitment process will begin soon after this exercise is complete and the proposed plan is approved by the Chief Minister, the official said.
Necessary instructions have been sent to all the departments to collate details of all the posts ranging from Group A to D. Also, the details of the appointments made since January 201 to March 2022. The Additional Chief Secretaries, Principal Secretaries and Heads of all the departments will check the data and forward the same to the government.
Political commentator Raj Bahadur Singh said that the move will benefit the BJP in the general elections as it expects to ride on non-Yadav, OBC, Dalit and Sawarna vote bank in the swing state. Political pundits call this as a big wager by the BJP for the 2024 elections. The move is seen as an effort by the Yogi government to connect to the most backward castes ahead of the general elections. The BJP leadership is trying to focus on the largest vote bank of OBC in Uttar Pradesh which is crucial in all 80 Lok Sabha seats in the State. The BJP is trying to consolidate the vote bank at every level.
Recently, BJP had appointed Chaudhary Bhupendra Singh coming from OBC as its state unit chief and the cabinet also has adequate representation including as Deputy CM from the OBC. Now that the preparations for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections are a year away, no stone is being left unturned at the government level as well.
