OBC politics in for churn after SC nod for survey

As opposition steps up call for caste surveys, ruling BJP's ambiguous stand on the issue may dent the party's fortunes

- PREETHA NAIR

WITH the Supreme Court giving a go-ahead to the publication of Bihar caste survey data on Friday, Mandal politics is likely to witness a churning in the run-up to the 2024 general elections. With Bihar and other Opposition-ruled states playing on the front foot on caste surveys, the Modi government's ambiguous stand on nationwide caste census may dent the party's fortunes on Other Backward Classes (OBCs).

Bihar's caste census will have implications nationally and the Central government will have to clarify its stand, says Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MP Manoj Jha. A caste count is the need of the hour to collect scientific data of contemporary nature, and decide the quantum of reservation accordingly, he added. The last caste census was done in 1931, which estimated the country's OBC population at 52 per cent.

"We did it in Bihar and this is becoming part of the national application. The BJP has to break its silence on the issue. The Centre can delay the caste census out of fear of numbers, but it has to be done ultimately as the Constitution guarantees reservation," he said.