Mumbai, Aug 6 (DC): Union minister Nitin Gadkari’s statement on the lack of jobs in the country has embarrassed the BJP. The Congress has said that Mr Gadkari’s statement mirrors the government’s performance.

Talking to reporters in Aurangabad on the Maratha reservation issue, Mr Gadkari said that granting reservation would not guarantee employment as jobs are shrinking in the country.

“Let us assume that reservation is given. But there are no jobs. In banks, jobs have shrunk because of IT. The government recruitment is frozen. Where are the jobs?” Mr Gadkari asked while responding to queries about the ongoing Maratha agitation in Maharashtra for reservation. He also said, “The problem with the quota is that backwardness is becoming a political interest. Everyone says I am backward. In Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, Brahmins are strong. They dominate politics and they say they are backward.”

Mr Gadkari’s statement has embarrassed his party, the BJP. Opposition parties were quick to pick on the statement and use it to corner the BJP. They said his statement is a mirror to the current employment generation situation in the country.

“He is right to say that there are no jobs in the market. The Modi government has failed to create new jobs. That’s pressurising the government sector, but here also recruitment is frozen and youth are angry. We thank Nitin Gadkariji for publicly echoing the statements issued by Congress president Rahul Gandhi about employment generation,” said Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant.

The Nationalist Congress Party chief spokesperson Nawab Malik said that Mr Gadkari’s statement exposes the BJP’s failure to create new jobs in the country. “These people keep lying about jobs and investment. But now, the situation is so alarming that a senior minister like him has to accept failure. The youth are feeling cheated now,” he said.