Dalits to boycott BJP in LS elections, support Cong

Jalandhar, May 14

Fumed over the BJP-led Central Government’s push to make amendments to the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act, 1989, members of the Dalit Maha Panchayat (Punjab) declared today that they would cast their vote in the favour of Congress candidates only. Besides, they said young voters of the community would also vote against the BJP for their continuous misappropriation of the post-matric scholarship for SC/ST students and non-fulfilment of other benefits to the community.

Rajneesh Sahota, chairman, Dalit Maha Panchayat, said: “The BJP-led Central Government’s thinking was always against the Dalit community and its proposal to amend the Act last year had proved it. Members of the community had already showed their uproar against the proposal on April 2, 2018, by calling a national-level bandh. But now, as the Lok Sabha elections are approaching in the state, they would again show their discontentment against the Modi government by casting vote in the favour of Congress candidates.”

He said by establishing the SC/ST Commission, the Congress had consistently taken initiatives for the uplift of the members of the community and on the contrary, the BJP had tried to change the Constitution of the country.

Sahota said in the absence of any suitable candidate, the BJP had been fielding film stars in the elections, who surprisingly have no awareness about core issues of people in the state. On the polling day, the SAD-BJP alliance would also face the brunt of implementing demonetisation and the GST that completely went against people of downtrodden sections. People from Dalit communities, especially Valmikis and Mazhabi Sikh Society, will support the Congress,” he said. Notably, it will also be interesting to see people that to whom SC/ST community members cast their vote as the Doaba belt is widely known as the ‘Dalit dominated region’ and the share of Dalits in the population of Punjab is higher than any other state. — TNS