Bhubaneswar, May 15 -- Senior Congress leader and former Union Minister Srikant Jena on Thursday criticised the Odisha government's reservation policy for SEBC students, calling it a "cruel joke" and a "betrayal" of the aspirations of OBC/SEBC and SC/ST students.
Speaking in response to the Cabinet decision taken on Wednesday, Jena said the move was a serious letdown for OBC/SEBC students and urged the government to revise the policy or face growing public outrage across the state.
In a statement issued here, Jena referred to the announcement made by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, which declared an 11.25 percent reservation for SEBC in higher education.
However, he criticised the exclusion of technical courses-such as medical, engine...