Will the gamble of providing reservation to upper caste communities work for BJP in 2019?

New Delhi, Jan 8: The cabinet decision to provide 10 per cent reservation to economically backward upper cast communities in the election year may help the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to sail through 2019 Lok Sabha elections but the fear of decision being counter productive cannot be ruled out. But before it becomes a reality, it has to pass through many test.

Actually decision in this regards has been taken a few months ago and even Lok Janshakti Party leader and Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan said that he not only favours but also supports reservation to poor people in the upper caste communities. Paswan's party has always included this in their manifesto. But with this actually the Modi government is trying to win over already angry upper caste people.

Reports have been reaching the government that the BJP has lost Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh due to anger of upper castes but it was more pronounced in Madhya Pradesh. The report coming from Uttar Pradesh is socking to the BJP leaders. Upper cast community is not supporting the BJP in the state despite a Rajput and a saffron clad sadhu at the helm.

If the BJP is not getting good report from the Hindi heartland, what will happen to the party in the rest of the country. The BJP has been trying from very long that it will be able to placate upper caste community people. But it failed to do anything. The repercussion of this reservation to upper caste may harm the party the way it had harmed the party in the case of SC/ST Act.

The BJP made amendments in the SC/ST Act going against the Supreme Court decisions but this has not gone down well with the upper caste and they felt there was no need to amend the law in Parliament. But the BJP did this with the hope that the entire Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe will rally behind the BJP. But the SC/ST have said that they secured their right by fighting on the streets.

Many other stakeholders came in between and the BJP was not even acknowledged by them but upper caste got infuriated by this decision and campaigned against the BJP in Madhya Pradesh. Now the Union cabinet has approved 10 per cent reservation which is likely to be taken to the court and second Other Backward classes and SC/ST will call it infringement in their rights.

This might also go against the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections if the issue is not handled carefully. These are some desperate moves that the BJP is trying to make to win 2019 Lok Sabha elections but they don't seem to be giving desired results.

However, with its allies if the matter is taken to people in the right manner it may help the BJP but this is definitely cause another layer of division that is not good for the healthy society. Reservation for poor upper caste was being demanded by several organisations so they will claim it to be their achievement.