‘Linking quota, population a ploy to divide India’: PM Modi

Modi’s sharp comments came a day after Bihar released the results of its caste survey that revealed that OBCs comprised nearly 2/3rd of the state’s population.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday accused the Congress of trying to divide society through its call of apportioning resources proportional to the demographic weight of communities, and asked if it was advocating for curtailing the rights of minorities, marking his first response to Bihar’s landmark caste survey that has the potential to upend heartland politics and trigger a churn in key caste groups.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses a public rally in Nizamabad on Tuesday. (ANI Photo)

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Modi’s sharp comments came a day after Bihar released the results of its caste survey that revealed that backward communities comprised nearly two-thirds of the state’s population and general categories formed around 15.5%. The exercise — the first to successfully enumerate caste groups in independent India — was hailed by Opposition parties, and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said, “Jitni aabadi utna haq” (Population weight will determine rights).

On Tuesday, Modi hit back.

Speaking at a rally in poll-bound Chhattisgarh’s Jagdalpur town, the PM lashed out at the Congress. “Since yesterday, the Congress has started speaking a new tune. Congress leaders say the population of people will decide rights and resources. For me, poor people are the biggest population of the country and they have the first right over resources. Welfare of the poor is my aim,” Modi said.

“The Congress wants to destroy India by dividing the Hindus at any cost; it wants to divide the poor also. For me, the poor are the biggest caste in the country. If the poor are looked after well, the country will automatically be well,” he said.

Modi then referred to a 2006 comment by former PM Manmohan Singh — made at a National Development Council meeting on the fiscal priorities of the government and minority empowerment — to allege that the Congress was against minorities.

“I was wondering what former PM Manmohan Singh ji would be thinking. He used to say that minorities have the first right to a country’s resources and that too, Muslims. But now, the Congress is saying that the population of the community will decide who will have the first right. So now does it want to curb the rights of the minority?” the PM said.

He then asked a question to the audience. “If they want to divide rights on the basis of population, then who will have the first right (over resources)? Whose population is more? Should Hindus, who have the biggest population in the country, come forward and claim the rights?” he asked. “Is the Congress trying to divide the society by giving such slogans?”

Modi’s aggressive remarks mark the strongest response by the Bharatiya Janata Party to the Bihar caste survey and sketches the contours of the possible strategy of the ruling party to an attempt by the Opposition to fragment its rainbow Hindu coalition, especially among marginalised communities.

The controversial caste survey, Opposition politicians hope, can precipitate a second Mandal moment, a reference to the implementation of reservation for OBCs in 1990 that coalesced other backward classes (OBCs) into a potent electoral bloc and sparked the rise of a clutch of regional parties that changed the face of heartland politics.

The 26-party Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) has pushed for a nationwide caste census, hoping that just as the first Mandal movement countered the Ram Janmabhoomi movement and helped regional parties craft alliances to hold on to power for nearly two decades, a second similar churn could pose a challenge to the dominant BJP.

Bihar’s caste survey results on Tuesday were the first steps on this road. The data showed that extremely backward communities — which comprises 112 castes — constituted 36.01% of the population, and backward castes — formed by 30 communities — made up another 27.12%. Together, OBC — the umbrella group consists of backward castes and EBCs in the state — is 63.13%, confirming estimates by exercises such as the National Family Health Surveys. Scheduled Castes form 19.65% and Scheduled Tribes 1.68%.

The so-called “upper castes” constitute 15.52% of the population, in line with what leaders such as Kanshi Ram predicted decades ago. Among backwards, Yadavs were found to be the biggest caste group, forming 14.26% of the population, while Kushwaha and Kurmi were 4.27% and 2.87%, respectively.

The data on other socioeconomic parameters collected — 17 criteria ranging from employment, education and marital status to land holding and property ownership were part of the survey’s questionnaire — was not released. This data could be crucial in understanding how castes are benefitting from reservation, and how intra-caste bloc divisions are evolving.

The BJP’s stance on the Bihar caste exercise has been cautious, but Modi’s remarks mark the first time that the party has clearly articulated its position. The party believes that its dominance is built on a successful strategy to mobilise less-dominant backward and Dalit groups into a broader Hindu umbrella. The party has also consciously injected marginalised caste leaders into its ranks, effectively countering an earlier perception that it was primarily focused on its traditional vote base, the upper castes.

In his speech in Chhattisgarh, where the BJP is looking to replace the Congress, the PM also said that the Congress was not run by leaders but in collusion with anti-national forces that have a secret pact with another country. He also accused the state’s ruling party of converting loktantra (democracy) to lootantra (corruption) and prjatantra (democracy) to parivartantra (dynasty).

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“I am repeating, the Congress party is no longer being run by Congress people. Senior leaders of Congress are sitting with their mouths shut, neither are they asked, nor do they dare to speak after seeing all this. Now Congress has been outsourced,” the PM said.

“The Congress has only given poverty to the country and divided society on caste lines in a bid to secure its vote bank. The party has been indulging in the same act today, too,” he said.

Modi blamed the Congress government for corruption and crime. “Sometimes it seems that there is a competition between Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh as to where the maximum number of crimes takes place. Development in Chhattisgarh is only visible either in posts and banners or in the coffers of Congress leaders,” he said.

Chhattisgarh is among five states — alongside Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana and Mizoram — that will go to the polls by the end of the year.

“Manmohan Singh’s statement which Modi ji has quoted in his speech is factually incorrect... The statement is on record and he should not mislead,” said RP Singh , senior leader and Congress spokesperson.

“Today’s speech of the PM could be seen in two aspects . Firstly, a large vote base of BJP is from upper caste and they want reservation to be abandoned sooner than later. This faultline may divide the vote base on upper caste and OBC lines. Secondly, the caste Census and the stand of INDIA alliance parties on the same has the potential to crack the unity in the hindu fold which is key of BJP”s electoral success. Modi ji has sensed this and tried to counter it before it began actually hurting him in 2024,” said Sudiep Srivastava, a political commentator based in Chhattisgarh.