SHILLONG, May 26: VPP legislator, Brightstarwell Marbaniang has slammed Education Minister, Rakkam A. Sangma for accusing the party of “playing with fire” for demanding a review of the reservation policy of 1972.
“This only shows the mentality of this government and the mentality of the Education Minister. Why can’t we demand our rights? We have not tried to instigate the people in any of our meetings,” Marbaniang said while speaking to reporters on Friday.
He said the Education Minister needs to understand the feelings of the Hynniewtrep community.
“Each and every member of the community feel that the reservation policy should be reviewed since it is not proportionate. We do not want to take away the rights of others. The statement of the Education Minister is wrong and highly condemnable,” the VPP legislator from Mawlai said.
VPP spokesperson Batskhem Myrboh also condemned the statement of the Education Minister terming the fast of party president Ardent Basaiawmoit as “drama politics”.
Myrboh said that the Minister and his colleagues should take the responsibility for creating a situation where an important public issue has to be discussed on the streets and the health of the VPP president is put in danger.
“His statement implies that he ridicules and mocks the struggle of the Khasi-Jaintia youth,” the VPP spokesperson said.
Meanwhile, he observed that the job reservation policy clearly states that population is the basis of the quantum of reservation. “The phrase ‘in terms of their population’ has been clearly stated in line number 8 of the Resolution dated 12.01.1972,” Myrboh pointed out.
“Regarding his blackmailing tactic that the VPP is playing with fire and the youth of the state would be affected by the likelihood of the job reservation policy of the state which is at present above the 50 per cent limit set by the Supreme Court in 1992, we would like to enlighten the minister that the independent judiciary in India does not decide cases on the basis of noise or the lack of it. Rather cases are decided as per law and facts placed before it,” the VPP spokesperson stated.
He further stated that in fact it is the duty and responsibility of the NPP-led MDA. 2.0 Government to defend the state job reservation policy before the court.
“If it fails to defend, it has to take full responsibility,” Myrboh added.
