Bihar caste survey: Let's talk economics, says BJP

“We were expecting this to happen. This report is not a surprise to us. Whenever Nitish Kumar is weak, he starts talking about caste politics. It is a sad situation that even though Bihar is a beneficiary of the Mandal Commission, the state remains poor, and there has been no economic growth in the state for nearly 35 years now. Nitish Kumar has remained chief minister of Bihar for nearly two decades, and he is directly responsible for the lack of development in the state,” said a senior leader of the BJP and a Lok Sabha member.

Although the BJP leadership now says that it is supportive of the caste-based survey, members of the party believe that the timing of the report could create tension between communities and disturb the social fabric of the state. “The state government has come out with an incomplete report. The findings and analysis of the report will come out at a later stage,” said Vijay Kumar Sinha, Leader of Opposition (LoP) of Bihar.

“The findings of the report were known to all, and there is nothing new in it. It is only when the area-wise data for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and Extremely Backward Classes (EBCs) comes out that we will know the truth of the survey. This is done to create tension in Bihar because Nitish Kumar does not have a vision for the state and lacks an economic development plan for the state,” added Sinha.

35 years of Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad

Members of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) believe that the idea of the caste-based survey was initiated when Nitish Kumar was part of the NDA, and all alliance partners endorsed this idea. Senior NDA leaders are now questioning the motives of both Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad, the former chief minister and head of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), given that they have collectively led the Bihar government for nearly 35 years.

“We are supporters of caste-based survey, and this idea was first introduced when Kumar was with the NDA. But the question to both Kumar and Lalu Prasad is that you have been chief ministers for 35 years, what have you done for the poor? Is the caste survey report only for election victory, or does the government have a plan?” questioned AK Bajpai, senior leader of Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas).

The leaders of the NDA further asked if the state government was planning to act on the caste survey and work for the socially and financially weaker sections of the state. Senior leaders also asked if the Bihar government was planning to announce some populist schemes for the marginalised communities.

“We do not know the plan of the Bihar government. We want to know if the state government is ready to make some announcements about schemes for the poor. We also want to know if this is just an election stunt or if there is any seriousness to the issue,” asked Bajpai.

Caste versus development

Ahead of the polls, the BJP believes that Kumar will have to explain to the people why their economic condition has not improved since he has been CM for nearly two decades. The BJP leaders also pointed out that the Janata Dal (United) or JDU and RJD alliance has suddenly started talking about caste-based census before the elections because Nitish Kumar is using caste census as a political tool to fulfill his prime ministerial ambition.

“We have heard from our friends in the JDU and RJD that the state government is planning a master stroke in October. The Bihar government is planning to make some populist announcements in October with the hope that it will help the opposition alliance win a substantial number of seats. This strategy is not going to work anymore. Just as caste politics is a reality, it is also true that there is a lack of economic development and employment opportunities in Bihar,” said a senior BJP leader.

Interestingly, members of the BJP also suspect that while the opposition alliance under Nitish Kumar was talking about the OBC communities, the JDU leadership will have to face backlash from Dalits and upper-caste people who feel neglected by the JDU and RJD.

“If we look at Nitish Kumar, he is only talking about OBCs and EBCs. How can a CM talk about only a few communities and not all the people of the state? We suspect that this will create a backlash from Dalits who are not just socially but also financially marginalised and from upper caste people who feel neglected by the Bihar government,” the BJP leader added.