New Delhi: Opposition parties are attacking the Modi government on the issue of alleged atrocities on dalits as they feel the crucial voting bloc was slipping away from them and going to BJP, Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said today.

The HRD Minister also defended the government’s handling of unrest in Kashmir and accused Pakistan of encouraging disturbance in the state.

“Actually dalits are coming to BJP in large numbers so there are some ‘thekedars’ (political contractors) who think they are losing their grip (on the dalit votebank). So they are attacking the government,” Javadekar said in an interview with Karan Thapar of India Today TV.

When asked about the Dayashankar Singh episode, in which the UP BJP vice president allegedly used derogatory words for BSP supremo Mayawati, inviting outrage, and dalit protests in Gujarat against assault on people from the community for skinning a dead cow, he said since Prime Minister Narendra Modi was taking all sections along. “People who think their bastions are threatened are getting affected,” he said.

When asked why BJP did not register an FIR against Singh, as demanded by Mayawati, Javadekar said, law and order is a state subject and “there is an FIR”. “Law enforcement machinery has to take action. Gimmicks won’t work and real action has to come from state administration,” he said.

Attacking the Congress, he said the party said nothing when “atrocities were committed in Haryana or a dalit girl was raped in Kerala” under its rule.

Javadekar said the BJP government in Gujarat had taken “prompt action” when dalits were beaten up by cow vigilantes.

Asked about opposition criticism of the government’s handling of the situation in the Kashmir Valley following the encounter killing of militant commander Burhan Wani, the Minister blamed Pakistan for the unrest.

“There is role of our neighbour in many things which happen along the border and in the country. We know how terrorism or how this tendency…stone pelting… it has been happening for years now,” Javadekar said.

He claimed the situation in the Valley was much better during the current spell of unrest than on previous occasions as both the Centre and state government were more “active”.

The NEET examination for admission to MBBS and BDS courses was being held in Srinagar, Javadekar said, adding the government was taking the right steps to ensure the situation improves in the long run.

PTI