Paswan calls for quotas in Army

NEW DELHI: Adding a new dimension to reservation politics, Union Minister for Steel and Lok Janashakti Party chief Ramvilas Paswan on Tuesday demanded reservation for Dalits, Adivasis and minorities in the army.

The demand was part of a series articulated at the two-day national executive of the LJP, which ended yesterday.  The proposals come at a propitious time: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is scheduled to inaugurate the first-ever ‘Dalit and Minorities International Conference’ in New Delhi today.

The conference, organised by Paswan, will be attended by as many as 11 senior Cabinet ministers, including External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Home Minister Shivraj Patil, and HRD Minister Arjun Singh. Social activists, MPs, NRIs, and leaders of the Dalit and Muslim communities have also been invited to attend the two-day conclave.

At the LJP executive, Paswan called for 33 per cent reservation for women in government and non-government services. Political parties are divided on a bill seeking a similar percentage of reservation for women in Parliament and the state assemblies.

A resolution adopted at the executive said women should be given interest-free loans to run industrial units.