NEW DELHI: Hitting out at Rahul Gandhi for his “hypocrisy” on the caste census issue, key NDA constituent Janata Dal (United) on Sunday accused the Congress member of maintaining silence when Bihar CM Nitish Kumar raised the matter in INDIA bloc meetings. The Kumar-led JD(U), which was part of the INDIA bloc before he snapped ties with the opposition alliance and joined hands with BJP, also asked why Congress govt in Karnataka has not released the state’s caste data.
JD(U) working president and MP Sanjay Jha’s attack on Gandhi came a day after he slammed the caste survey carried out by the Kumar-led govt as a fake exercise at an event in Patna, while pitching for a nationwide caste census.
“There cannot be a bigger hypocrisy than this. I was a witness to Gandhi maintaining silence while Kumar strongly and logically spoke in favour of caste census at INDIA bloc meetings in several places,” Jha told reporters.
Incidentally, Bihar’s caste survey was carried out and its findings were released when Congress was a partner in the govt led by Kumar. Jha said Kumar was the only leader who raised the issue of caste census, and all INDIA bloc members were a witness.
Defending caste survey in Bihar, he said Kumar is the only leader since 1931, when a nationwide caste census was held last, who decided to count population of different castes in a scientific manner to further social justice.
Taking a swipe at Gandhi, he said the leader of opposition in Lok Sabha should be more specific and tell people if he believes that Bihar’s caste survey has overcounted some communities and undercounted some others.
Jha said Kumar has used the figures to expand the scope of reservations, though the issue is currently sub-judice. Slamming Congress, he said its govt in Karnataka has been sitting over the caste-wise population data in the state for several years.
