BJP may have taken the initiative to restore the Scheduled Castes and Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act in its original format through a Parliamentary legislation but the party now is under attack from its core upper caste vote bank.
The restored Act not only triggered sharp reaction from the upper caste outfits but several senior BJP leaders also voiced strong reservations and even threatened to launch agitation against their own party on the issue.
BJP legislator from Ballia Surendra Singh slammed his own party on the issue and called upon the upper castes to take to streets to register their protest against the Act.
''The supreme court's decision about probe before making any arrest under Act was right.....by restoring the Act in its original format, the government has done injustice to the upper castes,'' Singh said.
Another senior state BJP leader, while speaking to Deccan Herald here, also voiced concern over the Act saying that it could have an ''adverse impact'' on the saffron party's core upper caste vote bank.
''We have been facing the anger of the upper castes in our areas....even the other backward castes (OBC) are not happy,'' the leader said.
Several upper caste outfits, especially in the western region of the state, have decided to launch agitation on the issue. A senior BJP leader in state's Hamirpur district said that he would lend support to these outfits.
Deccan Herald News now on Telegram - Click here to subscribe
Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Dailymotion | YouTube
