Shillong, October 23: The National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) has taken a step to address the inclusion of 87 backward communities into the OBC (Other Backward Classes) list in West Bengal.
As per IANS, a notice regarding this matter was issued to the state government, as confirmed by a senior government official who chose to remain anonymous.
Reports suggest that the reason for this notice is the state government’s failure to provide family-tree details for individuals who have undergone religious conversion when recommending these 87 communities for inclusion in the OBC list.
Out of the 87 communities proposed for OBC enlistment, 76 belong to the Muslim community, while the remaining nine are Hindus.
The state government has been instructed to submit the necessary documents requested by the NCBC at the upcoming commission hearing scheduled for November 3.
For some time, the BJP has accused the Trinamool Congress of using religious considerations in the OBC list enrollment. This accusation stems from the fact that in the existing state list, out of 179 OBC categories, 118 are Muslim, while only 61 are Hindu.
In response, the state’s ruling party has put forward its own perspective. According to the government, while the number of Muslim communities enlisted might be higher, it doesn’t necessarily mean that Muslims outnumber Hindus in the total OBC population in the state. It’s entirely possible that the total population included under the fewer Hindu OBC categories might surpass the total population under the numerous Muslim OBC categories, the state government added.