"Parties should refrain from benefiting certain communities for political gain": Amit Shah on Caste Census
Dec 10, 2023
New Delhi [India], December 10 : Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that questions have been raised regarding the prioritization of specific communities after the Nitish Kumar-led government in Bihar conducted a caste survey and further urged the Bihar government to address the issues raised in this survey.
"As far as the caste survey is concerned, it was decided when the BJP was a part of the Bihar government. When the resolution came, we were in support of this and we also supported the report that was given after the survey was conducted. The law was also passed in Bihar Vidhan Sabha but there were several questions raised regarding the survey, which included giving priority to Muslims and some other communities. Several other backward caste delegations met the leaders of the BJP, RJD and JDU. I urge the Bihar government to find a solution for all the questions raised in this survey," Shah told ANI on Sunday.
Shah also emphasized that political parties should avoid favoring specific communities for their own political gain.
"The political parties should refrain from benefiting certain communities for their own political benefits. On the other hand, they should also not do injustice with certain communities for their own political gains," said Shah.
The results from Bihar, a politically crucial state in the country, have the capacity to disrupt the political landscape nationwide, leading to calls for a comparable census on a national scale.
According to the data released on October 2, Scheduled Castes make up 19.65 per cent and the Scheduled Tribes 1.68 per cent of the population of the state.
The data also said that the Hindus comprise 81.99 per cent of the population, Muslims 17.7 per cent, Christians 0.05 per cent, Sikhs 0.01 per cent, Buddhists 0.08 per cent and other religions 0.12 per cent.
The data said that Yadavs, the OBC group to which Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav belongs, is the largest and accounts for 14.27 per cent of the state's population.
Kushwaha and Kurmi's communities form 4.27 per cent and 2.87 per cent of the population, the caste survey said.
Bhumihars constitute 2.86 per cent of the population, Brahmins 3.66 per cent, Kurmis 2.87 per cent, and Musahars 3 per cent.
The numbers stand in contrast to the quantum of reservations, which is 27 per cent that the OBC population gets in government jobs and admissions to educational institutions.
The total population of Bihar is more than 13 crore.
