UNI

New Delhi, May 25: Expressing itself in favour of 'capacity expansion' of institutions of higher learning, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday, however, noted that there should be no ''compromise on excellence and merit while dispensing social justice."

BJP spokesman Arun Jaitley, making an 'initial reaction' to the UPA's lst night decision to provide 27 per cent reservations for Other Backward Classes in central educational institutions, said the BJP had supported the Constitutional Amendment in the last session of Parliament with the hope of making the private institutions tow the line on social justice.

However, the BJP believes that the space for merit should not compromised while enlarging the capacity of the central educational institutions, he said, adding that the NDA government had embarked upon the process of establishing six AIIMS type of institutions in the country and upgrading the National Institutes of Technology to IITs.

"If these proposals had been implemented by the next government, it would have contributed a lot for capacity building but the UPA government had slowed down these proposals for political reasons," he claimed.

"The UPA, even while vehemently arguing reservations for the OBCs, had not made efforts to build consensus among the political parties and social groups. Even the GOM which went into the issue did not talk to the Opposition," Jaitley said, adding that "without consensus, it would be difficult to implement this decision.'' He said it would be ''prepostrous'' to leave out the minority-run institutions from bearing their due share of responsibility of social justice. ''They too should be made to comply the law like other institutions," he stressed.

"As far as my party is concerned, it would give its reaction when the government comes up with its Bill. Whatever we are saying now, is just initial reaction to the UPA's proposal," Jaitley said.