The Indian National Congress and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) on Sunday, 30 August squarely blamed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for the escalating public dispute between Union Ministers Jitan Ram Majhi and Chirag Paswan over the SC/ST 'quota within quota' debate, characterising it as the BJP's orchestrated 'drama' and its 'default template' of political management.

The Dispute at the Centre

The row erupted after Majhi accused Paswan of engaging in 'unconstitutional work' when Paswan publicly opposed proposals to introduce a 'creamy layer' provision within SC/ST reservations. Paswan, who leads the Lok Jan Shakti Party (Ram Vilas), had insisted that those advocating such a change should first resign from their positions. He stressed that the reservation policy was never designed around economic status but was created to address centuries of social discrimination, exclusion, and untouchability.

Opposition Fires at BJP

Bihar's Leader of Opposition Tejashwi Yadav was sharp in his assessment. 'The BJP is doing all this drama from behind. They are testing people's mood, putting pebbles in the water and seeing what happens,' he told reporters. He dismissed both ministers as political opportunists: 'These people are merely characters. They only want posts. They are greedy for positions, chairs, bungalows and security, but have left society behind.'

RJD MP Manoj Jha argued that both Union Ministers were doing 'injustice' to the core issue of reservation by refusing to examine the matter from a broader perspective. 'This facade is a default template of the BJP,' he said.

Congress Invokes Collective Responsibility

Congress MP Pramod Tiwari raised a constitutional point, arguing that ministers publicly attacking each other 'goes against the Constitution.' 'The principle of collective responsibility applies to the Council of Ministers. Whatever a minister says remains the government's position until it is contradicted,' he said, questioning why Prime Minister Narendra Modi had not intervened. 'When a government starts spilling over, the smaller parties are the first ones to leave,' he added.

Congress spokesperson Surendra Rajput went further, alleging that Majhi had prioritised BJP appeasement over the interests of Dalits and backward classes. He called for Majhi's immediate removal if he 'does not care about Dalits, the Constitution, or reservation,' and demanded that Paswan exit the NDA alliance if he genuinely stood with Dalits — 'otherwise, it will be considered that he is merely putting on a show.'

BJP Defends Its Reservation Stance

BJP national spokesperson Dr Guru Prakash Paswan pushed back, maintaining that the government's position on reservation is unambiguous. 'Reservation will exist till discrimination exists in society, and our government has strengthened this system. Whatever one says on this can be their personal opinion, but for social justice, the BJP is committed to fulfilling the vows of B.R. Ambedkar,' he said. The BJP framing — that individual ministerial remarks are personal opinions, not policy — is likely to be tested further as opposition pressure mounts.

What Comes Next

The public spat between two NDA allies over one of India's most politically sensitive policy areas puts the coalition under fresh scrutiny ahead of upcoming state elections. With the opposition framing the episode as a BJP-engineered distraction rather than a genuine policy debate, the Centre faces pressure to clarify its definitive stand on the 'creamy layer' question within SC/ST reservations.