Jaipur, Mar 16 (IANS): The BJP on Friday alleged that the Rajasthan government had not issued a single Economically Backward Caste (EBC) certificate in the state, and said it reflected its prejudice in implementing the 10 per cent EBC quota in the general category announced by the Central government in January.

Senior BJP leader and former State Minister Arun Chaturvedi told a press conference, "The state government initially delayed the issuing of the notification in this regard and it is now deliberately delaying implementation of the quota thus depriving people of general classes of its benefits."

The Central government issued the EBC quota notification on January 31, but the state government kept it on hold. It was issued on February 19, only after Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers protested across the state, Chaturvedi said.

Though it announced its guidelines on March 14, the Congress government still tried to complicate things in the name of caste certificates and definition of a family, he alleged.

Chaturvedi demanded that the state government must immediately issue the EBC certificates so that poor people in the state can avail the quota benefits at the earliest.