Mumbai: Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) President Harshvardhan Sapkal has urged the Union government to implement a time-bound caste-based census across the state, following the model used in Telangana and Karnataka. Addressing the media Sapkal emphasized that the principle of "representation proportional to population" championed by Rahul Gandhi must be enforced.
Sapkal stated that the caste census is not merely a headcount exercise but a major step towards achieving social justice. He highlighted that in Maharashtra, the OBC population, previously estimated at 27%, could potentially be revealed as high as 64% through a detailed caste census. Such a survey would also clarify the exact population figures for various communities, helping to resolve long-standing demands for reservations from groups like the Patidars, Gujjars, and Marathas.
The BJP had initially opposed the demand for a caste census, but pressure from the Congress and consistent advocacy by Rahul Gandhi forced the government to relent. “The credit for this breakthrough goes solely to Rahul Gandhi,” Sapkal said. “It was his relentless push that made the Modi government finally act.”
He further demanded that the government begin training officials and staff to properly carry out the data collection process.
Apart from caste census, Sapkal condemned the recent incident where Rahul Gandhi’s convoy was stopped by police while he was traveling to Bihar as part of the “Stop Migration, Provide Jobs” campaign. Calling the action authoritarian, he questioned whether interacting with students had now become a crime. “This is an attack on democracy and a violation of fundamental rights,” he stated. The Congress party has strongly protested the incident.
In a scathing attack on BJP minister Vijay Shah from Madhya Pradesh, Sapkal demanded that he be immediately removed from his post and expelled from the party for making derogatory remarks about Colonel Sofia. He urged that sedition charges be filed against Shah, labeling the matter as one that concerns the dignity of the nation. The MPCC president criticized the BJP’s central leadership for allegedly shielding the minister and failing to take action.
