Aurangabad, August 5: Union Minister Nitin Gadkari while talking to reporters in Aurangabad on Saturday said that reservation would not guarantee employment as jobs are shrinking. Gadkari further added that there was a "school of thought" which wants policy-makers to consider the poorest of poor in every community. The union minister made these remarks responding to reporters' questions on the ongoing agitation by the Marathas for reservation and similar demands by other communities in Maharashtra.

Gadkari said, “Let's us assume the reservation is given. But there are no jobs. Because in banks, the jobs have shrunk because of IT. The government recruitment is frozen. Where are the jobs?" The senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader stated that the problem with the quota was that backwardness was becoming a political interest. He said, “The problem with the quota is that backwardness is becoming a political interest. Everyone says I am backward. In Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, Brahmins are strong. They dominate politics. (And) They say they are backward.”

The union minister added, “One school of thought also is (that) we must also consider the poorest of the poor section in every community.” Later, Gadkari clarified that the government was not thinking to change the reservation criteria from castes to economic status. He tweeted, “My attention has been drawn to certain media reports attributed to me. There is absolutely no thinking at the central government to change the reservation criteria from castes to economic conditions.”

Gadkari also urged Maratha protesters to maintain peace. He said that Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis was trying to resolve the Maratha quota demand by holding talks. He also warned opposition parties not to politicise the issue. The union minister said that the development, the industrialisation and the good prices for rural produce would ease the economic distress that the Maratha community is suffering from.

However,  a data compiled from answers to questions in Parliament reveal that about 24 lakh posts are lying vacant with the central and state governments. According to a report published in The Times of India, apart from vacancies in the government-sponsored Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, most posts are open in the domain of states and Union territory administrations.

(With inputs from PTI)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 05, 2018 03:41 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).