Why is Centre not conducting census, JD(U) asks Amit Shah

A day after Union Home Minister Amit Shah put a question mark over the caste-based survey conducted by the Bihar Government, JD(U) MLC Neeraj Kumar asked why the Union Government was not conducting a social and financial census of the country.

“Amit Shah, you have failed as a Home Minister of the country. I want to address you as a cooperation minister. You are saying that the BJP was in favour of a caste-based survey in Bihar. I want to say that your Central Government has the constitutional rights to conduct social and financial surveys of the country. Why are you not doing it despite having all the machinery?” Kumar questioned.

“You are putting a question mark on the caste-based survey of Bihar. You should be ashamed of yourself as it was your duty to conduct a census in the country. You did not do that and hence the Bihar Government conducted a caste-based survey on its own in the state. If you disagree with the caste survey of Bihar, why are you not going for the census of the country? You have a government at the Centre and in many states. The Prime Minister is yours. You have the right to discuss population control, why are you not doing it? Put the caste-based survey report in Article 9 of the Indian Constitution,” Kumar said.

“Bihar is a poor state where several districts are flood-affected. You have given special status to nine districts of Gujarat on the basis of drought. Similarly, you have given the same to the districts of Marathwada and Vidarbha of Maharashtra. Then why are you hesitating to give special status to Bihar? We have the right to demand special status and we will take it from the Centre,” Kumar said.

Earlier, on Sunday evening, Amit Shah said that the caste survey was done to snatch the rights of the Backward Caste people.

“The caste survey was done in Bihar to benefit Muslims and one or two castes with the basic idea to reap political benefits in the elections. The rights of Backward Caste people were finished through this report. This is injustice to other castes,” Amit Shah said after the 26th Regional Council Meeting of the East Zone in Patna on Sunday.

“When the proposal for the caste-based survey came before us, the BJP was in power in Bihar, and we supported it. Even when the report came out and it became law, the BJP supported it. Despite that, a number of questions are rising now and these need to be addressed. Doing injustice with others for political benefits is not wise,” he said.