Patna:
Union Minister Chirag Paswan on Saturday expressed “concern” over the latest “purification” ritual at a venue in Uttarakhand the place Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge had addressed a rally. “The Congress get together and its chief — the Chief of the Opposition, Rahul Gandhi — have expressed concern relating to the discrimination Dalits nonetheless face immediately, citing a number of examples. If the social scenario stays unchanged, it’s actually a matter of concern for our authorities as effectively; that’s the reason we firmly articulate our stance on numerous points,” Paswan, chief of Bihar-based LJP, an ally of the BJP, informed the media.
Nonetheless, he additionally questioned the Congress and Lok Sabha Chief of Opposition Rahul Gandhi over what they did to cease discrimination towards Dalits. “These expressing concern immediately are the very folks the nation gave ample alternative to for a very long time after independence. How can they now declare that discrimination persists in society?” he requested.
“If discrimination continued in society regardless of this, it implies that they, too, didn’t strengthen the foundations successfully,” Paswan stated.
#WATCH | Patna, Bihar: Union Minister Chirag Paswan says, “The Congress get together and its chief—the Chief of the Opposition, Rahul Gandhi—have expressed concern relating to the discrimination Dalits nonetheless face immediately, citing a number of examples. If the social scenario stays unchanged,… pic.twitter.com/93cJ96ZMhg
— ANI (@ANI) August 29, 2026
On a separate thread, he stated the idea of reservation was social discrimination and argued that it shouldn’t be considered from an financial perspective.
“Concerning the query of reservation, now we have clearly said that since its very foundation lies in social elements and discrimination, discussing it from an financial perspective goes towards the Structure,” the Union Minister stated.
The Dalit chief was talking in regards to the challenge of sub-categorisation of Scheduled Castes for reservation primarily based on financial standing. The difficulty was raised just lately by one other Dalit chief Santosh Kumar Suman, a Bihar minister from BJP ally HAM, whose father Jitan Ram Manjhi is a central minister.
Paswan, whose late father was a central minister too, challenged these looking for modifications to the constitutional foundation of reservation to deliver such a proposal earlier than Parliament. “Let everybody come to the ground of the Lok Sabha and do it,” Paswan stated.
The difficulty additionally bought highlight just lately when a protest was held in New Delhi towards caste-based quotas.
Majhi has stated Chirag belongs to a caste that has bought a lot of the quota advantages, whereas others among the many SCs stay backward.
As for the Uttarakhand “purification” row, Rahul Gandhi had earlier within the day attacked the BJP and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) over the ritual performed on the Ramlila Floor in Haldwani following Kharge’s August 8 rally, calling it “one other identify for untouchability”. “Solely BJP and RSS members do that, and it’s a crime. Underneath India’s Structure, this can be a crime, a prison exercise. ‘Purification’ is definitely simply one other identify for untouchability. Untouchability was outlawed, but BJP members follow it brazenly,” Gandhi had stated. “Once they carry out this purification, they’re successfully saying that Dalits shouldn’t be touched, that Dalits are unclean, and this constitutes a criminal offense beneath the Indian Structure,” Gandhi stated.
The Haldwani controversy stems from a Congress rally held at Ramlila Maidan on August 8, forward of the subsequent 12 months’s Uttarakhand Meeting elections. Members of a right-wing group later carried out a purification ritual on the venue. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge had additionally raised the problem within the Rajya Sabha, alleging that the ritual was linked to his id as a Dalit chief. He later known as for strict authorized motion and demanded registration of a case beneath the Untouchability Act towards those that performed the ritual.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister has stated no BJP employee was concerned within the ritual. He claimed slogans have been raised by “folks from a selected faith” on the rally, and “in response, some non secular organisations held a purification programme there”. He claimed the state sees no discrimination.
#WATCH | Haldwani, Uttarakhand | On Rahul Gandhi’s assertion over purification row, Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami says, “…No BJP employee was amongst these individuals who carried out the purification, however does anybody in Uttarakhand know what Mallikarjun Kharge’s caste is?…… https://t.co/4auudCyOwX pic.twitter.com/lG9qKVWplK
— ANI (@ANI) August 29, 2026
