Reconsider demand for Caste census: Vakulabharanam to PM Modi

Telangana BC Commission Chairman Vakulabharanam Krishna Mohan Rao asked the Prime Minister Narendra Modi to reconsider the demand for Caste census.

Hyderabad: Telangana BC Commission Chairman Vakulabharanam Krishna Mohan Rao asked the Prime Minister Narendra Modi to reconsider the demand for Caste census, which would benefit all sections. “OBC Census is a serious concern but why BJP is dillydallying on such an important issue. BJP claims to be a pro OBCs party but in reality, we did not find any substance in its claims” he said in an Open Letter to the Prime Minister on Saturday.

The BJP government in reply to a question in Lok Sabha admitted that union government had not enumerated caste wise population other than SCs/STs in Census since independence and all the details of Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC-11) data collected and finalized is available on the Portals of Ministry of Rural Development and Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs excluding the Caste Data. These facts amply depict that BJP Government had no interest in Caste Census and no commitment towards the OBCs, he said.

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Majority of the States, including Telangana, have adopted unanimous resolutions in the Assembly for a clear-cut Caste Census in 2021. Bihar earmarked Rs. 500 crore for the Caste Census when there was no response from the Centre.

“Tamil Nadu and Karnataka have done the Caste Enumeration on their own volition without waiting for the Caste census,” said Vakulabharanam.

lt is an open fact that Gujarat Government limited the political Reservations in the local bodies to 10 per cent against 27 percent ceiling for OBCs and nearly 3500 villages are left out. lt is a gross violation of social justice under BJP regime, he pointed out.

The BJP Government appointed former Chief Justice of Delhi High Court for the sub categorization of OBCs in 2017 and sadly, the Commission term is extended from time to time.

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on OBCs welfare recommended for a headcount of OBCs in the forthcoming Census in line with SC/ST enumeration. This too sadly was kept aside without any reason, he added.

Telangana budget’s nearly 40 per cent goes towards the welfare of OBCs. The State government has set up residential schools and colleges for the OBC Boys and Girls separately for free of cost. Apart from these, fee reimbursement for those who enrolled in Engineering and Medicine and instituted full- scholarships for those who would like to pursue higher studies abroad.

The people should know how much budget is spent for the OBCs. Of the Rs 39.5 lakh crore union Budget for 2022-23, the budget allocation for OBCs was just Rs.1,000 crores, he added.