Congress for minority votes, not minority welfare: Advani

Kochi, Sep 2 (UNI) Blaming the Congress for the present condition of Muslims in the country, veteran BJP leader L K Advani today alleged that the former was not ''really concerned about the minority welfare but the minority votes.'' Addressing a press conference here, the Leader of the Opposition, said if the Sachar Committee discovered that the condition of Muslims in the country was not good, then who was to be blamed for this but the Congress, which had been ruling for most of the time since Independence.

Stating that the BJP would give its response to the Sachar Committee report on the floor of the House, Mr Advani said he was of the view that the very approach and background of the committee opposed the basic concepts of the Constitution.

''I have gone through the debates of the Constituent Assembly on reservation, where the members resolved to provide quota only for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes and provision for backward castes. It had decided that there should be no reservation on the basis of religion or community. Even Nehru had hailed this decision of the Assembly,'' Mr Advani said.

Observing that the issue of ''communal reservation'' had emerged during the tenure of the present UPA Government, Mr Advani alleged that ''vote bank politics'' was at the root of this.

''I believe that this is not in the interest of the nation or even the minorities,'' he added.

UNI