New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), already struggling to somehow reconcile the interests and demands of its newer Other Backward Classes (OBC) base versus its old political base of the so-called forward caste groups, is facing more trouble with National Democratic Alliance (NDA) constituent ministers hitting out at each other over the government’s existing reservation policy.Now, in the spotlight, in the wake of the health minister J.P. Nadda indulging the ‘Reservation Hataao’ agitationists in Delhi, is a call by high-profile minister in the union cabinet, Chirag Paswan, calling for fellow minister, Bihar’s former chief minister and Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) (Secular) leader Jitan Ram Manjhi to resign from prime minister Narendra Modi’s cabinet over a matter regarding reservation for the so-called better off sections of the Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs).Paswan, leader of the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) (Ram Vilas) and Manjhi, head of the HAM (Secular) are important constituents at the Centre and also in Bihar where BJP has its first chief minister in a coalition government. Both Paswan and Manjhi are powerful Dalit faces in the state for the BJP-led NDA. Manjhi hails from the Musahar community, among the most backward Dalit groups. It has been their case that within the SC category, groups like the Paswans and Ravidas communities have been able to benefit more from the reservation extended to the group as a whole.Over the weekend, Paswan reacted strongly to Manjhi and his son, a minister in Bihar, Santosh Kumar Suman’s call for a review in the existing policies for reservation and for sub-quotas for SCs and STs within the existing reservation. Manjhi and his son said a review was essential so that reservation could benefit the most vulnerable and historically marginalised communities. Suman, the national president of the HAM (S), has said that not a single person from the Musahar community has been able to become an IAS officer.“We are not talking about ending reservation. We are talking about making reservation more just, effective and ensuring that it actually reaches those who are deprived,” Suman said, as per India Today.Both Paswan’s LJP (Ram Vilas) and HAM(S) are allies of the NDA in Bihar as well as at the Centre.“Those asking why there should not be a creamy layer should first give up the benefits of reservation. If Jitan Ram Manjhi believes in the creamy layer concept, he should first resign. His son should resign too,” Paswan told reporters.Paswan has held that reservation for SCs is not to alleviate poverty but addresses social discrimination, which does not go away with a little bit of economic empowerment.The ‘sub-quota’ chestnutThe BJP has been toying with the idea to get into ‘sub-quotas’ for marginalised committees and a G. Rohini commission was set up by the Modi government for that purpose. But its recommendations, submitted finally after 14 extensions are yet to be made public. Any call for sub-quotas for the SCs and STs has been very contentious and strongly opposed by community members.A Supreme Court judgment in 2024, allowed states to sub-classify SCs and STs to try and push quota benefits to the more backward castes in these categories.Last month, a petition was filed in the Supreme Court calling for exclusion of socially and economically advanced individuals from reservation benefits. It argued that affluent families within the SC and ST categories were monopolising reservation benefits. Citing the 2024 judgement, the petition says that as four of the seven judges on the Constitution bench suggested extending the creamy layer principle to these groups, its request must be considered.However, the Modi government in an affidavit before the apex court said the concept of ‘creamy layer’ was not applicable to SCs and STs. Therefore, the principle has been applied only to OBCs.Meanwhile, a debate on how the creamy layer idea is to executed is on with the Modi government facing criticism from another of its MPs. BJP MP and chief of House committee on welfare of Other Backward Castes (OBCs) Ganesh Singh has said that the OBC creamy layer income test issue appears to be stuck between the Ministry of Personnel, Pensions and Public Grievances and the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.The Hindu has reported that Singh said while the policy should be formulated ideally by the Ministry of Social Justice based on the Supreme Court’s reading of the income test in its March ruling, it has “not happened yet”.The Modi government is already under fire from marginalised groups, over University Grants Commission (UGC) rules calling out caste discrimination in universities being hastily put on ice, and then with allegations about the caste census 2027 deliberately obscuring caste data. The 40 questions part of the census ask for many personal details not so far required for any census, but does not have a drop-down box for caste, nor ask people to self-identify as OBC, to allow for proper collation of caste data.