Paswan takes dig at RSS over quota remarks

BJP ally and Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan on Sunday took a swipe at RSS over controversial comments by its publicity chief on reservation, wondering why it makes such remarks during elections, noting a similar row had cost NDA heavily in the Bihar polls.

Paswan, the most prominent Dalit face in the Narendra Modi government, said his party LJP will oppose "tooth and nail" any attempt to subvert the existing quota system.

He said it was natural for people to get confused by the kind of comments RSS spokesperson and its all-India publicity chief Manmohan Vaidya made about reservation recently.

"Last time RSS had made similar comments during the Bihar assembly polls and now it has said so during the Uttar Pradesh polls. What I cannot fathom as to why does it make such comments during elections?

"We had suffered heavily in Bihar due to this. RSS is an independent organisation and I don't know why it gives such statements. It is but natural for people to be confused by such comments," Paswan told PTI.

RSS's publicity chief Manmohan Vaidya had on Friday kicked up a row with remarks favouring a review of the reservation policy, saying even Ambedkar had not favoured its continuance in perpetuity, comments that could be potentially damaging for BJP in elections to five state assemblies.