Stressing that although the Maharashtra government had never objected to conducting a caste-based survey, Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis on Friday clarified that his government, however, would not take any decision that would heighten social tensions across the State.
In a bid to retain the slipping hold of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over the critical Other Backward Classes (OBC) vote-base in the State, Mr. Fadnavis, who was addressing a rally in Washim district (in the Vidarbha region) as part of his party’s ‘OBC Jagar Yatra’, said that the BJP’s “DNA comprised of the OBC and the VJNT (Vimukta Jati and Nomadic Tribes).”
Accusing Congressman Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party of double-standards, Mr. Fadnavis demanded to know why it was so insistent on holding a caste census at a time when the 2024 Lok Sabha election was round the corner.
“We [the BJP and the Eknath Shinde-led Maharashtra government] have never said no to a caste survey. But I have a question… why has there been no caste census since 1931. On May 7, 2011 the then Home Minister and Congress leader P. Chidambaram had told the Lok Sabha that except a census for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, their [Congress-led UPA] government will not be conducting any caste census,” Mr. Fadnavis said.
He challenged the Congress party to announce an OBC Prime Ministerial face for the 2024 general election.
“We have no problem with such a census. But we will not take any decision which will set caste against caste in the State. It is ironical that the Congress-ruled UPA had decided not to announce the figures when they had conducted a caste census in 2011, but are now clamouring for it after their ally, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar’s caste survey. However, in Bihar, already many castes among the OBCs are decrying the survey as bogus,” claimed Mr. Fadnavis, stating that the Bihar caste survey and the Congress’ demand for it were mere gimmicks for political mileage.
The BJP’s OBC yatra comes at a time when the ruling Eknath Shinde-BJP-Ajit Pawar-led NCP government is under siege by a restive Maratha community demanding a quota. This has prompted fierce counter-agitations on part of the OBCs in Maharashtra who are fearful of the Marathas eating from their 19% reservation pie.
Reiterating that under no circumstances will the Shinde government deal a blow to the OBC and VJNT communities while giving a quota to the Marathas, Mr. Fadnavis said his government would safeguard OBC rights.
“The OBCs and the VJNTs are the BJP’s DNA. While we are confident of giving reservation to the Maratha community, this will not come at a cost to the existing OBC reservation. We are committed to granting the Marathas a quota and CM Shinde is assiduously working towards that objective. We will not stop till we have given them a quota, but the OBCs and VJNTs have no need to be worried on this count,” he said.
Mr. Fadnavis hit out at the erstwhile Congress-NCP and the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) governments, alleging they had done nothing for the welfare of the OBCs.
“Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar keeps accusing the BJP for not doing enough for the OBCs. I want to know why he or his former governments [previous Congress-NCP regime and MVA government] could not setup a single OBC hostel for students. Our government is already in the process of establishing no less than 36 OBC hostels in the State,” he said.
Mr. Fadnavis claimed that it was during his tenue as CM (2014-19) that the Maharashtra government had disbursed maximum funds through the OBC Bahujan Kalyan department.
“When I was CM, I had passed 36 government resolutions [GRs] pertaining to the welfare of the OBCs. Four more have been passed by CM Shinde in our present government’s tenure. However, some political parties do not want peace in Maharashtra. They are pitting caste against caste and misleading the public by uttering lies and falsehoods about our government. We will not permit this,” he said.
