Latest news with #Nishads
Time of India
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Even CM post is not far if Nishads vote unitedly: Sahani
Patna: Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) president Mukesh Sahani on Thursday claimed that not only the deputy CM post but even the CM's chair is not impossible for him if the 10% Nishads in Bihar vote unitedly. He was addressing the party workers in Bhojpur. Mukesh said the VIP won four seats in the last assembly elections and they made him a minister. "BJP hatched a conspiracy as they thought Mukesh Sahani can win 40 seats tomorrow and 125 next and he will become CM. So, they bought my party's four MLAs," he alleged. "We have the target to win 40 seats in the coming election," Mukesh said and asked the party workers to start preparations in Barhara and Ara Sadar assembly constituencies in Bhojpur to contest in the coming elections. Earlier, at a press conference on Wednesday, Sahani said the Grand Alliance will contest the coming assembly election under the leadership of RJD's Tejashwi Prsad Yadav and himself. He went to the extent of saying that the RJD-VIP needed Congress backing in Bihar as the grand old party will need their support in the 2029 Lok Sabha elections. His comments drew sharp reactions from not only the NDA netas but of Congress as well. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like local network access control Esseps Learn More Undo Congress state media cell chairman Rajesh Rathorre evaded a direct reply but said only the decisions taken by the INDI Alliance coordination committee in Bihar are acceptable. While JD(U) spokesman Abhishek Jha said Congress and the Left parties should decide now as Sahani was claiming No. 2 spot in the alliance, BJP state spokesperson Prabhakar Kumar Mishra said, "This is like he is distributing invitation cards for 'Chhathiyaari' (a child's birth celebration) when there is no date fixed even for marriage yet. The person who had a fish party with Tejashwi in a helicopter during Navaratra is calling himself a contender for the post of deputy CM. " He said there was a long queue of people in the Grand Alliance for the CM candidate. "Now another queue is also being formed for the candidature for the post of deputy CM," he said.
Mint
05-05-2025
- Politics
- Mint
Caste Census and Bihar elections: OBC figures as BJP's poll wand?
In July 2021, the minister of state for home affairs Nityanand Rai told Parliament that ``the government of India decided it as a matter of policy not to enumerate caste-wise population other than Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs), in the Census.'' By May 2025, this policy had been turned on its head. With the BJP government on Wednesday deciding to hold a caste census along with the upcoming Census, the Mandal caste reservations of 1989 have come into a full political circle. Its echoes are aimed for the moment on minister Nityanand Rai's state Bihar, where assembly polls will be held in a few months' time. Bihar has one of the largest number of other backward classes (OBC) in India. While actual figures are at best opaque, UP may have the biggest number of OBCs, that are loosely calculated on estimates based on family registers and other data. Bihar and Andhra Pradesh follow with roughly the same percentage. Yet, this list is not final. The central and state OBC lists differ radically. With state governments constantly pruning and adding new castes, depending on political convenience, it keeps changing. According to the National Commission of Backward Castes, Bihar tops the country with 136 OBCs, followed by 98 in West Bengal. The political point is who will this OBC enumeration benefit? Says D M Diwakar, former Director at the A N Sinha Institute of Social Studies, Patna, and currently associated with Development Research Institute, Jalsain, Bihar: "Whatever the BJP may do now, the fact is that the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) had raised the issue at the national level for the first time, and they are going to gain. A delegation, which included Tejaswi Yadav and Nitish Kumar had met PM Modi in August 2021 but got no commitment.'' Tejashwi Yadav termed the Centre's decision as a victory for his party's stance on the issue. By most educated estimates, OBCs constitute over 50 per cent of Bihar's population today, with Muslims, SCs and the upper castes each accounting for something in the vicinity of 15% each. To have any realistic chances of electoral success in the state, political parties and coalitions must secure a substantial share of the OBC vote, and bolster it with support from some other, non-OBC electorates. Bihar's OBCs comprise numerous caste groups, the largest of which include the Yadavs, Nishads, Kurmis and Koeris. Yadavs, who are thought to form around 15 % of the state population, traditionally favour the Lalu Prasad Yadav-led RJD. Nitish Kumar, Bihar's current chief minister and the leader of the Janata Dal (United) or JD-U, has a large base among non-Yadav OBCs, including his own Kurmi caste, as does the Rashtriya Loktantrik Samata Party leader Upendra Kushwaha, who has appeal among his Koeri caste. Crucially, since 2014, the BJP is said to have consolidated support among the Nishads, believed to constitute at least 10% the state's population, and so the largest caste group among Bihar's Extremely Backward Classes (EBC), a sub-category of the OBCs. This has led to the BJP's consolidation in the only crucial Hindi-belt state that has denied it a full embrace. Theoretically, it puts the saffron combine in a strong position, relying significantly for its own support on the Nishads and some of their fellow EBCs, as well as on the upper castes, which have traditionally constituted a reliable BJP vote bank. In addition, the BJP is also courting a section of the SCs to diversify its appeal—and the Lok Janashakti Party, a constituent of the NDA headed by Chirag Paswan, is expected to deliver support for the BJP-led alliance from the Paswans, believed to account for a third of Bihar's SC population. This time though, the going may get tough for the Ram Vilas Pawan scion, which remains largely unaffected by the OBC reservation. In the 2020 assembly elections in Bihar, it was these factors that propelled the BJP to an all-time high of 74 assembly seats of the 110 contested, an improvement on the 53 assembly seats it won in 2015, coming a close second to the RJD's 75 seats. According to journalist Pranav Chaudhary, the OBC narrative being pursued by Rahul Gandhi has been snatched by the BJP. ``The message has gone down. It is the BJP, which is going to implement the programme, never mind who was demanding it earlier.' Elsewhere in UP, SP boss Akhilesh Yadav tweeted that 'The decision of caste census is a 100% victory of the unity of 90% PDA or "pichre" (backward), Dalit and "alpashankhak" (minority). Due to the combined pressure of all of us, the BJP government has been forced to take this decision.'' Much will depend upon the challenges the enumerators can face in any fresh effort, plus the complexities of the mammoth exercise. Diwakar, however, believes that the sting from the BJP's decision has been substantially softened by the 2022 Bihar caste survey, which had put the OBC percentage at 63.14. Of this, the EBC constituted 36.1% while OBCs were pegged at 27.13 per cent. Elsewhere, Karnataka and Telangana too have made announcements regarding changes and proposals to their respective OBC lists and reservation policies. Karnataka is considering increasing OBC reservation and potentially modifying the existing categories. Telangana has already passed legislation to increase reservation for backward classes, which could exceed the 50 per cent Supreme Court ceiling. Opinion remains divided on who will gain, but the OBCs' value as a vote bank is unquestionable. OBCs comprised 52% of the country's population as per the Mandal Commission report of 1980 and were determined to be 41% in 2006, when the National Sample Survey Organization (NSSO) took place. There are many who believe that OBC numbers could even be higher. Whatever the BJP may do now, the fact is that the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) had raised the issue at the national level for the first time, and they are going to gain. The 1931 Census conducted by the colonial British government had also put the OBC numbers at 52% of the then total 271 million population of the country. That figure became the basis of the Mandal Commission's recommendation in 1980 to grant 27% reservations to OBCs in education and government jobs, which was implemented only in 1990.
Mint
05-05-2025
- Politics
- Mint
Caste Census and Bihar elections: Could the BJP benefit from OBC figures?
In July 2021, the minister of state for home affairs Nityanand Rai told parliament that ``the government of India decided it as a matter of policy not to enumerate caste-wise population other than Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs), in the Census.'' By May 2025, this policy had been turned on its head. With the BJP government on Wednesday deciding to hold a caste census along with the upcoming Census, the Mandal caste reservations of 1989 have come into a full political circle. Its echoes are aimed for the moment on minister Nityanand Rai's state Bihar, which goes to the assembly polls in a few months' time and has one of the largest – if not the largest – number of other backward classes (OBC) in India. While actual figures are at best opaque, UP may have the biggest number of OBC, that are loosely calculated on estimates based on family registers and other data. Bihar and Andhra Pradesh follow with roughly the same percentage. Yet, this list is not final. The central and state OBC lists differ radically. With state governments constantly pruning and adding new castes, depending on political convenience, it keeps changing. According to the National Commission of Backward Castes, Bihar tops the country with 136 OBCs, followed by 98 in West Bengal. The political point is who will this OBC enumeration benefit? Says D M Diwakar, former Director at the A N Sinha Institute of Social Studies, Patna, and currently associated with Development Research Institute, Jalsain, Bihar: "Whatever the BJP may do now, the fact is that the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) had raised the issue at the national level for the first time, and they are going to gain. A delegation, which included Tejaswi Yadav and Nitish Kumar had met PM Modi in August 2021 but got no commitment.'' Tejashwi Yadav said the Centre's decision is a victory of his party's demand. By most educated estimates, OBCs constitute over 50 per cent of Bihar's population today, with Muslims, SCs and the upper castes each accounting for something in the vicinity of 15% each. To have any realistic chances of electoral success in the state, political parties and coalitions must secure a substantial share of the OBC vote, and bolster it with support from some other, non-OBC electorates. Bihar's OBCs comprise numerous caste groups, the largest of which include the Yadavs, Nishads, Kurmis and Koeris. Yadavs, who are thought to form around 15 % of the state population, traditionally favour the Lalu Prasad Yadav-led RJD. Nitish Kumar, Bihar's current chief minister and the leader of the Janata Dal (United) or JD-U, has a large base among non-Yadav OBCs, including his own Kurmi caste, as does the Rashtriya Loktantrik Samata Party leader Upendra Kushwaha, who has appeal among his Koeri caste. Crucially, the BJP is said to have consolidated support among the Nishads since 2014, believed to constitute at least 10% the state's population, and so the largest caste group among Bihar's Extremely Backward Classes (EBC), a sub-category of the OBCs, which has led to the BJP's consolidation in the only crucial Hindi-belt state that has denied it a full embrace. Theoretically, it puts the saffron combine in a strong position, relying significantly for its own support on the Nishads and some of their fellow EBCs, as well as on the upper castes, which have traditionally constituted a reliable BJP vote bank. In addition, the BJP is also courting a section of the SCs to diversify its appeal—and the Lok Janashakti Party, a constituent of the NDA headed by Chirag Paswan, is expected to deliver support for the BJP-led alliance from the Paswans, believed to account for a third of Bihar's SC population. This time though, the going may get tough for the Ram Vilas Pawan scion, which remains largely unaffected by the OBC reservation. In the 2020 assembly elections in Bihar, it was these factors that propelled the BJP to an all-time high of 74 assembly seats of the 110 contested, an improvement on the 53 assembly seats it won in 2015, coming a close second to the RJD's 75 seats. According to journalist Pranav Chaudhary, the OBC narrative being pursued by Rahul Gandhi has been snatched by the BJP. ``The message has gone down. It is the BJP, which is going to implement the programme, never mind who was demanding it earlier.' Elsewhere in UP, SP boss Akhilesh Yadav tweeted that 'The decision of caste census is a 100% victory of the unity of 90% PDA or "pichre" (backward), Dalit and "alpashankhak" (minority). Due to the combined pressure of all of us, the BJP government has been forced to take this decision.'' Much will depend upon the challenges the enumerators can face in any fresh effort, plus the complexities of the mammoth exercise. Diwakar, however, believes that the sting from the BJP's decision has been substantially softened by the 2022 Bihar caste survey, which had put the OBC percentage at 63.14. Of this, the EBC constituted 36.1% while OBCs were pegged at 27.13 per cent. Elsewhere, Karnataka and Telangana too have made announcements regarding changes and proposals to their respective OBC lists and reservation policies. Karnataka is considering increasing OBC reservation and potentially modifying the existing categories. Telangana has already passed legislation to increase reservation for backward classes, which could exceed the 50 per cent Supreme Court ceiling. Opinion remains divided on who will gain, but the OBC value as a vote bank is unquestionable. OBCs were found to comprise 52% of the country's population by the Mandal Commission report of 1980 and were determined to be 41% in 2006 when the National Sample Survey Organization (NSSO) took place. There are many who believe that OBC numbers could even be higher. Whatever the BJP may do now, the fact is that the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) had raised the issue at the national level for the first time, and they are going to gain. The 1931 Census conducted by the colonial British government had also put the OBC numbers at 52% of the then total 271 million population of the country. That figure became the basis of the Mandal Commission's recommendation in 1980 to grant 27% reservations to OBCs in education and government jobs, which was implemented only in 1990. Some in the BJP government are doubting the numbers collected by the 2011 Socio-Economic and Caste Census (SECC) conducted by the Manmohan Singh government, a comprehensive survey conducted across India, aiming to collect data on households and their socio-economic characteristics, whose findings were never made public. The risk with such an approach is that another political dispensation may rubbish the findings of the current government. First Published: 5 May 2025, 06:08 PM IST
Hans India
02-05-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
Caste census historic: BJP; slams Oppn for seeking credit
New Delhi: BJP leaders on Thursday welcomed the Central government's landmark decision to include caste-based enumeration in the upcoming national census while firmly rejecting the Opposition's attempts to claim credit for the move. Following the Centre's announcement, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday asserted that the decision reflected his party's long-standing commitment to social justice. He claimed the Modi government had bowed to pressure and embraced the Congress-led Opposition's developmental agenda. The Samajwadi Party and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) made similar claims, stating the BJP had accepted their decades-old demands. RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav had also claimed, 'This is a victory of our ancestors, socialist leaders and socialism. We have continuously fought for this. Our leaders have raised the issue time and again, whether on the streets, in the Assembly, or in court. Even today, we are strongly advocating for it, and now the BJP and NDA are being forced to dance to our tune.' Rejecting such claims, Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi for taking the bold and historic step. Speaking to IANS, Maurya said, 'Neither Congress, nor the Samajwadi Party, Rashtriya Janata Dal or INDIA bloc can take credit for this. If anyone deserves credit, it is PM Modi. He comes from a backward class and has risen to the highest office in the country. Many could not tolerate this and continuously opposed him -- they removed his head from posters, abused him, and used derogatory language against him.' 'I and the nation congratulate PM Modi for the historic and revolutionary step. The Opposition has given up now,' he added. Uttar Pradesh Minister Sanjay Nishad also welcomed the decision, calling it historic and transformative. 'Today, I thank PM Modi, he took a historic step. Now, when the census takes place, it will be revealed which section of society is suffering what kind of problems. Who is educated, who is deprived, everything will come to light, and the schemes and policies will be implemented accordingly,' he said. Nishad further criticised past governments for discontinuing the caste census. 'These people have no right to speak. The British were better than these people, they conducted the census in 1931-41. These people stopped it in 1951, it has remained closed since then. There was so much discrepancy that the Nishads, who were 70 lakh in 1961, were put in OBC category. These people just keep making baseless claims,' Nishad added. Delhi Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa echoed the sentiment, praising PM Modi's leadership. 'We wholeheartedly welcome the commitment made by the Prime Minister. He had promised that a nationwide census would be conducted, and through a caste census, we would be able to understand who needs what and where. Only then can appropriate action be taken. If the country is to move forward and become a 'Viksit Bharat', it must take all sections of society along,' he said. Union Minister Giriraj Singh took a direct swipe at RJD and Congress, saying, 'Lalu Prasad spent his life obeying Sonia Gandhi, suppressed reservation, and thrived under Congress. He ruled in the name of the Mandal Commission but never implemented it. It is Narendra Modi who has cleansed the decades-old sins of Lalu and Congress.'
Hans India
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
BJP hails 'historic' caste census decision, slams Oppn for 'seeking credit'
BJP leaders on Thursday welcomed the Central government's landmark decision to include caste-based enumeration in the upcoming national census while firmly rejecting the Opposition's attempts to claim credit for the move. Following the Centre's announcement, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday asserted that the decision reflected his party's long-standing commitment to social justice. He claimed the Modi government had bowed to pressure and embraced the Congress-led Opposition's developmental agenda. The Samajwadi Party and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) made similar claims, stating the BJP had accepted their decades-old demands. RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav had also claimed, "This is a victory of our ancestors, socialist leaders and socialism. We have continuously fought for this. Our leaders have raised the issue time and again, whether on the streets, in the Assembly, or in court. Even today, we are strongly advocating for it, and now the BJP and NDA are being forced to dance to our tune." Rejecting such claims, Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi for taking the bold and historic step. Speaking to IANS, Maurya said, "Neither Congress, nor the Samajwadi Party, Rashtriya Janata Dal or INDIA bloc can take credit for this. If anyone deserves credit, it is PM Modi. He comes from a backward class and has risen to the highest office in the country. Many could not tolerate this and continuously opposed him -- they removed his head from posters, abused him, and used derogatory language against him." "I and the nation congratulate PM Modi for the historic and revolutionary step. The Opposition has given up now," he added. Uttar Pradesh Minister Sanjay Nishad also welcomed the decision, calling it historic and transformative. "Today, I thank PM Modi, he took a historic step. Now, when the census takes place, it will be revealed which section of society is suffering what kind of problems. Who is educated, who is deprived, everything will come to light, and the schemes and policies will be implemented accordingly," he said. Nishad further criticised past governments for discontinuing the caste census. "These people have no right to speak. The British were better than these people, they conducted the census in 1931-41. These people stopped it in 1951, it has remained closed since then. There was so much discrepancy that the Nishads, who were 70 lakh in 1961, were put in OBC category. These people just keep making baseless claims," Nishad added. Delhi Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa echoed the sentiment, praising PM Modi's leadership. "We wholeheartedly welcome the commitment made by the Prime Minister. He had promised that a nationwide census would be conducted, and through a caste census, we would be able to understand who needs what and where. Only then can appropriate action be taken. If the country is to move forward and become a 'Viksit Bharat', it must take all sections of society along," he said. Union Minister Giriraj Singh took a direct swipe at RJD and Congress, saying, "Lalu Prasad spent his life obeying Sonia Gandhi, suppressed reservation, and thrived under Congress. He ruled in the name of the Mandal Commission but never implemented it. It is Narendra Modi who has cleansed the decades-old sins of Lalu and Congress."
