PATNA: Even as Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar toughens his stand on the caste census, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and other Opposition parties are looking askance at him, exhorting him to clarify his position, after the Centre virtually ruled out the enumeration of OBCs (Other Backward Castes) by filing an affidavit in the Supreme Court.
Senior minister Bijendra Prasad Yadav’s controversial remark on the issue of special status for Bihar gave an opportunity for the Opposition to train their guns on Nitish, accusing him of dithering on his stand. The minister said the government has dropped its demand for special status for Bihar “as it is tired of repeatedly demanding it”.
After the barrage of snide remarks from the Opposition, Nitish sought to downplay his cabinet colleague’s comment by claiming he (Nitish) had not given up on the demand for special category status for the state. “The minister may have made an off-the-cuff remark,” the CM was quoted in the media as saying.
Nitish has already called an all-party meeting to discuss the future course of action on the demand for caste census following submission of an affidavit by the Centre in the Supreme Court. It is still not clear though whether the BJP will participate in the all-party meeting, for which a date has yet to be fixed.
Now, only time will tell whether Nitish is ready to sacrifice his government on the issue of caste census, or it is yet another ploy of his to keep the BJP under check, particularly after the saffron party emerged much stronger than his party, JD (U) in the last assembly elections, said a political analyst on the condition of anonymity.
Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition in the state assembly Tejaswi Yadav has sent missive to 33 non-BJP leaders for the demand of caste-based census in the country.
‘No single rational reason against conducting caste-based census’
“The ruling party does not have a single rational reason against conducting caste-based census,” Tejaswi argued in his two-page letter.
“A chief minister who could not succeed in getting central university status to Patna University, how could he get special status to Bihar? I’ve already said Nitish Ji has become tired and now his party has also accepted that they along with the Chief Minister have become tired. Nitish Ji is only worried about his chair and not Bihar,” tweeted Tejaswi.
Earlier, Tejaswi had also served a three-day ultimatum to Nitish Kumar to reveal his next step following the Centre’s refusal to heed their demand.
Neeraj Kumar Babloo, senior BJP leader and a minister in the Nitish cabinet, said there is no need for the caste census and instead a law should be enacted for population control. He said the BJP has worked hard for the welfare of backward castes under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
On the other hand, JD (U)’s chief spokesperson and MLC Neeraj Kumar said JD (U) is the first party in the state to demand a census of backward castes. On the initiative of chief minister Nitish Kumar, the state assembly has passed unanimous resolutions twice, demanding caste census, he retorted, stressing that resolutions were passed in the national executive as well as national council of the party to that effect. Nitish has been making a demand for it since the 90s, the JD (U) leader pointed out.
“An all-party delegation has already put the matter (demand for caste census) at the highest forum in the parliamentary democracy (Prime Minister) and we should wait for a response from him,” Kumar said, adding that there is a demand for the remuneration of OBCs across the country and it’s not confined to Bihar alone.
Senior Congress leader and MLC Premchandra Mishra said Nitish should make clear his stand on the caste census after submission of affidavit in the Supreme Court by the Centre.
‘Ball is in Nitish’s court now’
“The ball is now in the court of Nitish, and he has to take a final call on the caste census, but it is intriguing as to why he’s maintaining silence,” Mishra remarked.
“In the past too, Nitish has only agreed to what the Narendra Modi government has wanted, whether it was the issue of triple talaq, NRC, special status for Bihar, and upgrading Patna University to the central status, as if his opposition was only for namesake,” Mishra said.
Talking about this issue, CPI (ML) general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya said the Bihar BJP would have to explain to the people of the state as to why the Modi government is refusing to conduct a caste census.
“Similarly, Nitish Kumar too will have to explain his continued association with the NDA not just over the caste census but over a whole lot of issues including the disastrous farm laws, aggressive privatisation campaign, draconian detention centres, and the ongoing assault on the constitutional foundation and parliamentary framework of India’s democracy,” he added.
The CPI (ML) leader alleged the Centre’s refusal to conduct caste census is in line with the Modi government’s systematic attempt at subverting and scuttling reservation. Caste census was needed for rationalisation of reservation in accordance with India’s updated demographic profile, he stressed.
State AIMIM president Akhtarul Iman said the intention of Nitish as well as that of BJP is not clear on the issue of caste census. He also asked Nitish to clarify his position after the Narendra Modi government categorically refused to conduct the enumeration of OBCs in the 2021 census.
“We do have religion-wise census, so what is wrong if enumeration of OBCs is done?” he asked, pointing out that advanced technology is available now so there should not be any major hiccups in carrying out such an exercise. A democratic government should function transparently and should also be sensitive,” the AIMIM leader said while taking a dig at the Central government on the issue.
Bihar CPI (M) secretary Awadhesh Kumar said Nitish is only interested in protecting his chair of chief minister and his words and deeds do not match. “Nitish should clarify his position after the submission of affidavit on the caste census by the Centre.”
Will the BJP-JD(U) alliance break?
As a showdown is anticipated between Nitish and BJP over the issue of caste census, it is being hotly debated whether the alliance between BJP and JD (U) would break, leading to the fall of the Nitish government eventually?
Political analyst Dr Sanjay Kumar said Nitish is left with no option but to stay with the BJP. Any speculation on the break-up of the alliance between two parties holds no water, he added. “If Nitish walks out from the NDA, it’s sure that the RJD-led grand alliance will not accept him as chief minister anymore, as Tejaswi is undisputedly willing to fill the slot whenever the opportunity arises,” he noted.
Commenting on the developments, senior journalist and political analyst Priyaranjan Bharti said the relationship between BJP and JD (U) is far from normal as there is a lack of trust between them. He said Nitish is apprehensive that the BJP may replace him as chief minister of Bihar with its own leader, and if it really happens, he would be left with no option but to quit the NDA.
On the other hand, Nitish is also causing embarrassment to the BJP by differing on a slew of issues like caste census and renaming of Bakhtiyarpur – a town named after Bakhtiyar Khilji, the military general of Qutb-ud-Din-Aibak, who destroyed the famed Nalanda University.
Will the government carry out caste census despite BJP’s opposition?
The Bihar government has already committed to holding a caste census of OBCs if the Centre refuses to do so. However, doubts are being raised over its intentions.
CPI (M) leader Awadhesh Kumar said Nitish would not gather courage to carry out enumeration of OBCs in the caste census if the BJP opposes it. “Nitish, instead, will keep requesting the Centre to reconsider its decision on the caste census until next general election is held in 2024,” he said sarcastically.
However, political analyst Bharti said Nitish would go ahead with his plan to hold a caste census even if the BJP opposes it. “Nitish will never allow Tejaswi to take all the credit on the caste census and hence he will conduct the caste census lest he is branded as a politician with an insatiable lust for power.
Whether BJP could suffer electorally by refusing the caste census?
It would be premature to say whether the Narendra Modi government’s decision to give short shrift to caste census will adversely impact the BJP’s electoral chances, said political analyst Kamal Kant Sahay.
It will all depend on how all opposition parties and even NDA allies like JD (U), Apna Dal or Republican Party of India (Athawale) come under one umbrella to corner the Narendra Modi government on the caste census issue. According to the post-poll survey for 2019 Lok Sabha election in Bihar by Lokniti-CSDS, 70 percent Koeri-Kurmis (two dominant OBC castes) voted for the NDA while 76 percent OBCs (other than these two castes) voted for the ruling alliance. Even 21 percent Yadavs, considered a strong vote bank of the RJD, voted for the NDA while 55 percent of Yadavs voted for the UPA in the last Lok Sabha election.
BJP always concentrates on consolidating Hindu votes instead of division of votes on caste lines. The party has been able to stitch together a rainbow Hindu coalition with OBC groups at its core, as part of its strategy in the recent elections. Similarly, Prime Minister Modi has given more representation to OBCs in the Union cabinet, granted OBC reservation in medical and dental education, and restored the right of states to enumerate OBCs.
“Under these circumstances, the BJP can very rightfully claim to have already worked for the benefit of these communities,” said senior journalist Mithilesh Kumar, while contending that the party will not suffer electorally on account of non-holding of the caste census.
Main Image on top by Ashok Sinha
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