Mumbai:A BJP MP from Maharashtra today favoured amendments in the SC/ST (Prevention Of Atrocities) Act to ensure the stringent legislation is not misused.

Speaking to reporters here at Mantralaya, Nana Patole also questioned those in the Maratha community who argue they want reservation in jobs and education without encroaching upon the quota of Other Backward Classes (OBCs).

The MP from Bhandara-Gondia in Vidarbha sought to suggest OBCs hardly benefited from quota in Maharashtra.

“What benefits have the OBCs got from reservation meant for them anyway? The state government should set up a separate Ministry for the OBC community.”

Commenting on the silent ‘morchas’ being organised by the Marathas all over the state in support of their demands, he wanted to know what the community leaders did for them when they were in power.

Taking a swipe at NCP leaders Sharad Pawar and Praful Patel, Patole said only 150 families between Baramati and Gondia (the duo’s home turfs) benefited when their party was in power.

Reiterating his demand for caste-based Census in 2021, he said despite reports by several commissions and committees, the issue of Maratha reservation has failed to stand up to judicial scrutiny.

“The current reservation system is based on the pre- Independence 1931 caste Census. The Court has struck down moves to extend reservation to the Maratha community in the absence of any (caste-based) data.”

Commenting on the demand for changes in the Atrocities Act, he said amendments should be made to ensure the law is not misused.

The demand is being voiced by Marathas in the wake of Kopardi rape and murder case, where the victim belonged to the politically dominant community, while the accused were Dalits.

PTI