In a recent development, Chirag Paswan, a prominent leader of the Lok Janshakti Party, has vehemently denounced the findings of the caste survey released by the Bihar government. He has raised serious allegations of political manipulation, contending that the data has been manipulated to inflate the population figures of certain castes while diminishing those of others, including the Paswans.
Mr. Paswan has expressed his concerns, stating, “A clear political conspiracy is discernible within the caste census data put forth by the Bihar government. Many statistics have been artificially inflated to favor one particular caste for political gains, while deliberate attempts have been made to underrepresent the actual population of several castes.” These allegations come amid accusations of a lack of transparency in the survey process.
Furthermore, Mr. Paswan has drawn attention to the exclusion of several “small” castes, both within the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes categories, from the survey. He asserts that similar treatment has been meted out to numerous Other Backward Communities, leaving them underrepresented in the data.
Highlighting the lack of transparency in the survey exercise, Mr. Paswan has claimed that the identities of caste affiliations were not solicited even from ordinary citizens, let alone political activists.
Calling for a correction of these discrepancies, Mr. Paswan emphasized the need for a more equitable representation of the smaller castes, which he deems to have been unjustly omitted from the survey.
The release of this caste survey data by the Nitish Kumar government has taken place ahead of the 2024 Parliamentary elections and has disclosed a significant revelation – that OBCs (Other Backward Classes) and EBCs (Economically Backward Classes) constitute a substantial 63 percent of the state’s total population.
This development has sparked a contentious debate, with political leaders and stakeholders reacting to the allegations of skewed data and its potential political ramifications.
In sum, the dispute surrounding the caste survey data has added a layer of complexity to the political landscape in Bihar, setting the stage for further scrutiny and debate as the state prepares for the upcoming elections.
By PTI
