BJP MP Sambit Patra launched a fierce attack on the Congress-led Karnataka government on Friday, accusing it of “tearing the Constitution to pieces” for religious appeasement over its decision to raise reservation for minorities in housing schemes from 10% to 15%.
Calling the move a blatant example of vote bank politics, Patra said, “This is a perfect example of how people keep the Constitution in their pockets after tearing it apart. For the Congress Party and the Gandhi family, the Constitution is secondary to appeasement.”
Speaking at a press conference, Patra said he had come to expose the Karnataka Congress unit’s “double standards” and “appeasement-driven politics” which, he alleged, were undermining the social fabric of the country.
The BJP MP sharply criticized the Congress government for injecting a “religious angle” into welfare policies. “Congress is inviting long-term disaster for short-term political gains,” he said, referring to the Cabinet’s decision to hike reservation quotas for minorities, including Muslims, under state housing welfare schemes.
He further pointed to the Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurement (Amendment) Bill, 2025, alleging it exemplifies how the Congress has turned welfare governance into a “marketplace of appeasement.”
“Wherever Congress comes to power, reservation based on religion becomes their first priority. They are never apologetic about it. There’s no focus on governance, only divisive experiments,” Patra claimed.
His comments come in the wake of the Karnataka Cabinet’s Thursday decision, which approved an increase in minority quota for housing schemes—drawing strong opposition from BJP leaders who argue that religion-based reservations contravene constitutional provisions.
In response, Karnataka Minister HK Patil defended the move, saying that no new rules were needed and the hike would benefit all minorities, including Christians, Jains, and Buddhists.
The issue has ignited a political storm, with the BJP accusing Congress of using state welfare as a tool for religious appeasement ahead of key electoral contests.