BJP, Trinamool wage war of words over West Bengal’s revised OBC list

Trinamool Congress and BJP clash over new OBC list in West Bengal, sparking heated debate and accusations.

The Trinamool Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) engaged in a bitter war of words on Wednesday (June 18, 2025) over a new list of other backward class (OBC) communities in West Bengal.

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This comes a day after the Calcutta High Court ordered an interim stay on the State government’s notification of a new OBC list. In May 2024, the High Court had cancelled OBC reservations awarded to 77 categories, citing a lack of legislative policy within the 2012 scheme to classify any group as OBC. In June this year, the State government tabled a revised list.

The Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari, along with BJP MLAs, distributed sweets outside the State Legislative Assembly premises in Kolkata on Wednesday, chanting slogans such as: “OBC bill atke gelo (OBC bill got stayed)“, and “Muslim-der OBC korte parlo na (They could not classify Muslims as OBCs)“.

“One of the reasons why [West Bengal Chief Minister] Mamata Banerjee looks so disturbed today is yesterday’s stay order on the OBC list. She knows that 17% of Hindu OBCs have been left out. She tried to snatch their rights. On the other hand, she tried to fool nearly two crore Muslims. She thought she could give them OBC certificates like a ‘lollipop’ when she could not give them employment, education, and healthcare,” Mr. Adhikari said.

He added that the Chief Minister has “spelt doom” for the “hard-working Muslims who had dreams of becoming doctors, engineers, or civil servants as general category applicants.”

Later in the day, Ms. Banerjee accused the BJP and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) of not wanting the OBC Bill to pass.