PUNE, FEB 23: Congress spokesperson V N Gadgil on Sunday said that economically and socially backward members of the Muslim community should be considered for the facilities and reservations provided to the Other Backward Classes (OBC).Addressing a gathering of Muslims organised by the Congress Minority Cell in support of party candidate from Pune, Vitthal Tupe, the veteran Parliamentarian said that the Congress would make necessary amendments in the existing laws to ensure that the deprived class from minority communities is extended the facilities provided to OBCs.
An assurance to this effect has been already given by the party in its election manifesto for the Lok Sabha polls, the Congress spokesman added.
``If elected to power, the Congress would set up a minority education commission, besides special colleges for the members of the minority community. These colleges would be governed by the Centre and not the local universities. A national university named in the memory of Maulana Azad would beestablished to regulate the functioning of these colleges,'' Gadgil said.
He pooh-phooed BJP's prime ministerial candidate Atal Behari Vajpayee's statement saying, ``To command and guide a population of 90 crores is not a joke. It requires people of the calibre of Jawaharlal Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shastri and Rajiv Gandhi. Vajpayee doesn't come anywhere near these personalities,'' he said.
Earlier, senior Congress leader Sharad Pawar also fired a salvo against the BJP, comparing its election manifesto with that of the Congress. ``The BJP manifesto declares that the party is committed to constructing a Ram temple at Ayodhya. They have also announced to opt for the Common Civil Code and abolish Article 371 of the constitution,'' Pawar said accusing the BJP of adopting an anti-Muslim stand.
Referring to the reported statement of Suresh Kalmadi, who at a rally of Muslim community members had announced that he would not join the BJP, Pawar said, `` Kalmadi is cheating you. Listen to what he speaks in ShaniwarPeth. There, he vouches that he would strive hard to make Vajpayee the prime minister. Remember Kalmadi is BJP, Kalmadi is RSS and Kalmadi is Shiv Sena.''``This is the last battle. Be with us and we assure you that the communal forces will be wiped out for ever,'' Pawar said.
President of the cell, Rashid Khan, former MLA Amminuddin Penwale, principal of Ness Wadia college H M Shaikh, former PMT chairman Vastad Riyaz, Congress candidate Vitthal Tupe, also spoke at the meeting. On the occasion, Hazi Nadaf, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leader from Bhavani Peth area, announced his support to Tupe.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
