Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, on Friday, welcomed the decision of Calcutta High Court regarding OBC-Muslim reservation, saying that the Constitution of India never allows reservation on the basis of religion.

Speaking to the media at his official residence here, Yogi commented: “The TMC government of West Bengal, driven by political appeasement, introduced this reservation in 2010 by forcibly including 118 Muslim castes into the OBC category. This approach of prioritising political interests over national welfare by the INDI Alliance must be denounced and exposed.”

He criticised the Mamata Banerjee government of West Bengal for forcefully encroaching upon the rights of OBCs.

“The Honorable High Court’s reversal of the TMC government’s unconstitutional action is a significant rebuke. Such unconstitutional acts cannot be tolerated. Dr BR Ambedkar reiterated this point numerous times in the Constituent Assembly.”

He explained that in India, reservation provisions were established for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, and after the Mandal Commission, the reservation was instituted for Other Backward Classes, taking into account their social and economic backwardness.

“The Constitution of India never allows reservation on the basis of religion. Baba Saheb had repeatedly warned the country that the country was divided on the basis of religion and we should not create any such situation which would push the country towards partition.”

Describing the decision of the Calcutta High Court as an ‘example’, the chief minister emphasised that even in Karnataka, the Congress government has made similar encroachments on the rights of OBCs by providing reservations to Muslims.

“Similar actions have been taken in Andhra Pradesh as well. It is crucial to strongly oppose all such measures. Any unconstitutional act that threatens to divide India and weaken its foundation should not be accepted at all,” he said.