The caste-based census is not just for Bihar, the whole country will benefit from it, Nitish Kumar said.
patna:
Bihar’s chief minister, Nitish Kumar, was set to visit Delhi tomorrow to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi to push for a caste-based census. He would lead a delegation of ten members, including the BJP, which was not keen on such a count.
“Some people have already reached Delhi and some are coming with me. Tomorrow we will meet at 11 o’clock,” he told reporters on the occasion of rakhi.
When asked if the matter will be resolved tomorrow, he said: “We’ll see”.
“It’s a crucial issue and we’ve been looking for this for a long time. If it succeeds, nothing could be better than that. Besides, it wouldn’t just be for Bihar, people all over the country will benefit. At least once We will put forward our views from this angle,” he said.
Mr Kumar had previously repeatedly said that a caste-based census is in everyone’s best interest and concern that such a census will upset a group of people is unfounded.
“It’s up to the Center to do a caste census or not… it’s our job to put forward our opinion. Don’t think one caste will like it and the other won’t… It’s in everyone’s interest,” he said. told reporters.
Not only Mr Kumar, several Bihar leaders who cross party lines have demanded a caste-based census, which has not happened in India since the British period.
But after independence, it was scrapped and replaced by a caste and tribal census, as leaders such as BR Ambedkar said it could cause division in society.
The BJP was also unenthusiastic about the matter, but Mr Kumar had pointed out that they had no objection when the state assembly passed a resolution in favor of a caste-based census.
