Mayawati demands caste survey in UP immediately

Lucknow: Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati on Tuesday demanded the state government start conducting the caste survey right away, saying though some parties are against it, this is the only way to justice for the OBCs.

"The news of the caste census data conducted by the Bihar government being made public is in the news today and intense discussions are going on on it. Some parties are definitely uncomfortable with this, but for BSP this is the first step in the long struggle for the constitutional rights of OBCs," Mayawati said in her post on X.

1. बिहार सरकार द्वारा कराए गए जातीय जनगणना के आँकड़े सार्वजनिक होने की खबरें आज काफी सुर्खियों में है तथा उस पर गहन चर्चाएं जारी है। कुछ पार्टियाँ इससे असहज ज़रूर हैं किन्तु बीएसपी के लिए ओबीसी के संवैधानिक हक के लम्बे संघर्ष की यह पहली सीढ़ी है।

— Mayawati (@Mayawati) October 3, 2023

She said BSP is happy that the country's politics is taking a new turn in favour of the neglected 'Bahujan Samaj', as a consequence of which even the most extreme "anti-caste" and "anti-Mandal" sects have become worried for their future.

The BSP leader said although the UP government should now start a caste census or survey immediately in line with sentiment of the public, "the right solution will be found only when the central government conducts the caste census at the national level and gives them their due rights."

The Nitish Kumar government in Bihar had on Monday released findings of its much-awaited caste survey months ahead of the 2024 Parliamentary elections, which revealed that OBCs and EBCs constitute 63 per cent of the state's total population.

According to the data, Bihar's total population stood at a little over 13.07 crore, out of which the Extremely Backward Classes at 36 per cent were the largest social segment followed by the Other Backward Classes at 27.13 per cent.