New Delhi, Jan. 22 (PTI): BJP ally and Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan today took a swipe at RSS over controversial comments by its publicity chief on reservation, wondering why it makes such remarks during elections, noting a similar row had cost NDA heavily in the Bihar polls.

Paswan, the most prominent Dalit face in the Narendra Modi government, said his party, the LJP, will oppose "tooth and nail" any attempt to subvert the existing quota system. He said it was natural for people to get confused by the kind of comments RSS spokesperson and its all-India publicity chief Manmohan Vaidya made about reservation recently.

"Last time, the RSS had made similar comments during the Bihar Assembly polls and now it has said so during the Uttar Pradesh polls. What I cannot fathom as to why does it make such comments during elections? We had suffered heavily in Bihar owing to this. The RSS is an independent organisation and I don't know why it gives such statements. It is but natural for people to get confused by such comments," said Paswan.

RSS's publicity chief Manmohan Vaidya had on Friday triggered a row with remarks favouring a review of the reservation policy, saying even Ambedkar had not favoured its continuance in perpetuity, comments that could be potentially damaging for the BJP in elections to five state assemblies.

Paswan also said that he played a key role in pushing for quotas.

"Existing reservation benefits over 85 per cent of the population and no government can afford to tinker with it," he said.