TMC slams BJP for 'failure' to pass bill providing quota to ST community in Goa assembly

Panaji: The Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Friday hit out at the BJP for "failure" to pass the Bill that seeks to provide reservation to the Scheduled Tribe (ST) community in the Goa legislative assembly.

The Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Tribes in Assembly Constituencies of the State of Goa Bill, 2024 was introduced in the Lok Sabha in August last year by Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal.

Talking to reporters, TMC spokesperson Trajano D'Mello said the Mamata Banerjee-led party has been raising the issue of political reservation for STs in Parliament.

"But BJP leaders refused to pass the bill during the recent Parliament session, claiming that there are more important bills that need to be passed. They failed to clear the bill," he claimed.

There was no opposition to the bill and hence it would have easily been passed in Parliament, he said.

According to D'Mello, TMC MP Derek O'Brien had raised the issue during the Business Advisory Committee (BAC), but the BJP refused to take it up.

"This (central) government is out to crush the people who are coming ahead in life," he said, adding that the number of ST community members in Goa was significant.

This government is meant for higher class people, he alleged.