Congress Vows to Conduct Caste-Based Census for OBCs if Elected to Power, says Rahul Gandhi
30-09-2023 : Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has announced that if his party comes to power at the national level, it will conduct a comprehensive caste-based census to accurately determine the number of Other Backward Class (OBC) individuals residing in the country. He made this statement during a public gathering in the Kalapipal assembly constituency in Shajapur district of Madhya Pradesh, where state elections are scheduled to take place by the end of the year.
During his address, Rahul Gandhi criticized the influence of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and central government officers in shaping the laws of the country, asserting that elected representatives from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were not playing a significant role in the legislative process.
Gandhi expressed concern that the country’s policies and laws were being formulated by a select group of around 90 officers, including the cabinet secretary and secretaries, rather than by the elected MPs and MLAs from the BJP. He further claimed that the RSS was delegating the task of governing to the government in an attempt to divert public attention away from crucial issues.
The former Congress president also highlighted his own experience, stating that he was disqualified from the Lok Sabha after speaking out against industrialist Gautam Adani in the House. He asserted that despite his disqualification, he would continue to speak the truth.
On the topic of women’s reservation in legislative bodies, Rahul Gandhi expressed support for the concept but criticized the lengthy process for its implementation, which he estimated could take around 10 years due to the requirement for a population census survey and delimitation. He also questioned the absence of reservation for women from the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category in this legislation.
Rahul Gandhi pointed out the ideological divide in India, with one side promoting values of love, respect, and brotherhood, which he associated with the Congress, and the other side espousing hate and anger, which he attributed to the RSS and the BJP. He asserted that the youth and farmers in India were increasingly disenchanted with the latter ideology.
In his speech, Rahul Gandhi criticized the government for allegedly prioritizing the interests of a select few industrialists over the welfare of the general population. He also labeled Madhya Pradesh as an “epicenter of corruption” in the country, referencing scandals like Vyapam and alleged corruption in areas such as the sale of MBBS degrees and the construction of the Mahakal Lok corridor.
Furthermore, Gandhi lamented the high number of farmer suicides in the state, claiming that 18,000 farmers had taken their own lives over the past 18 years, averaging three farmer suicides per day.
