Pratima Bagri, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA and state minister, appeared before a state-level scrutiny committee on Monday to argue that she belongs to the Scheduled Caste (SC) community and is not a Rajput as has been alleged.
Bagri, 37, was elected in 2023 from Raigaon, an SC-reserved seat, and later inducted into the cabinet.
The row over her caste began after Pradeep Ahirwar, president of the Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee’s SC wing, filed a petition in the Madhya Pradesh High Court, alleging that Bagri and her family had fraudulently obtained SC certificates.
Subsequently, the court directed the state government to investigate and ordered that public announcements be made in villages linked to her family, asking people to come forward with information to verify the claims.
On Monday, Bagri submitted her grandfather’s caste certificate to the committee, headed by Gulshan Bamra from the state SC welfare department.
She said: “My family hails from Raigaon Satna. I knew of our lineage going back four or five generations. We did not settle here after migrating from elsewhere; rather, we are natives of this village. It is true, however, that our standard of living has improved compared to the past. I gave all the documentary proof to the committee.”
Ahirwar, who also appeared before the committee, cited a 2007 amendment published in the Government of India Gazette, claiming it made clear that SC certificates should be issued only to members of the Bagri community, excluding the Rajput/Thakur Bagdi sub-castes of Bundelkhand and Mahakaushal.
{{/usCountry}}Ahirwar, who also appeared before the committee, cited a 2007 amendment published in the Government of India Gazette, claiming it made clear that SC certificates should be issued only to members of the Bagri community, excluding the Rajput/Thakur Bagdi sub-castes of Bundelkhand and Mahakaushal.
{{/usCountry}}Ahirwar told reporters that Pratima Bagri’s family did not register themselves as SC in the 1960s and 1970s because they had migrated from other places and belonged to the Bagdi Rajput community. Her grandfather got himself registered as an SC community member, and later it was misused by other members of the family.”
The committee is expected to submit its report to the high court for a decision.