Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Wednesday said an appropriate decision on conducting a caste-based census will be taken only after seeking opinion from all sections of society and keeping public sentiments in mind.
Mr. Shinde was speaking on the sidelines of his visit to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s (RSS) headquarters at Reshimbagh in Nagpur where he paid tributes to RSS founder K. B. Hedgewar and the second ‘sarsanghchalak’ M.S. Golwalkar.
Mr. Shinde, whose Shiv Sena faction is an ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Maharashtra, was asked about Vidarbha RSS functionary Shridhar Gadge’s recent remarks that a caste-based census was not in the nation’s interest. “Maharashtra is a progressive State and its culture and traditions are different from other States. Here, all castes and communities live, work and celebrate in harmony. Hence, after taking the opinion of all sections of society, an appropriate decision will be taken on whether or not to conduct a census keeping the feelings of the people in mind,” said Mr. Shinde.
Earlier, Mr. Gadge had said that a caste-based survey was an exercise that would only benefit some people politically by providing data about the population of a certain caste, and was not good for national unity.
The Opposition Congress has been pushing for a countrywide caste census. Leader of the Opposition Vijay Wadettiwar had hit out at the RSS’s on the issue by saying that it did not want the backward castes of the country to progress economically.
‘No politics behind visit’
Mr. Shinde, who split the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena last year to form an alliance with the BJP, said he felt at peace and drew energy and inspiration after visiting the Dr. Hedgewar Smruti Mandir every year during the winter session of the Legislature.
“There is no politics behind us [his Shiv Sena faction] coming over here [RSS headquarters]. Our government has been formed on the ideology of ‘Hindutva’ and the ideals of (late Shiv Sena founder) Balasaheb Thackeray. This is the Hindutva of development, as enunciated by our PM Narendra Modi,” Mr. Shinde said, adding that his government represented the common people and that accessibility was the key feature of his government.
“I too work as a common man. That is why people like us and our government,” claimed Mr. Shinde.
