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Karnataka BJP President BY Vijayendra on Friday lambasted the Siddaramaiah-led Congress government over the controversial caste census, terming it "unscientific" and questioning its legitimacy.
Vijayendra alleged a lack of clarity from Chief Minister Siddaramaiah regarding the census and criticised the government for proceeding without a clear mandate. He also accused the government of wasting over Rs 150 crore on the exercise, which he deemed flawed and unreliable. "First of all, there is no clarity with the CM regarding the caste census. When the state government did not have a mandate to do a caste census, how did they come to a conclusion?... Many communities, including the Jain community and the backwards classes, are contradicting the numbers shown in the report. BJP has been repeatedly stating that this census has not been carried out properly... More than Rs 150 crore has been spent. However, when we discussed this with many community leaders, they said that nobody had come to their houses." Demanding the rejection of the report, Vijayendra suggested that the Siddaramaiah government might be attempting to "divide communities" rather than deliver justice to backwards classes. "The Siddaramaiah government has to reject this unscientific report... Maybe the CM is more interested in dividing the community... I doubt if the CM is actually serious about giving justice to the backwards class community." The special cabinet meeting on the Socio-Economic Survey concluded on Thursday, and Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah asked ministers to submit their concerns in writing. The Karnataka government is likely to convene another round of cabinet discussions on the issue. Karnataka Minister N. Chaluvaraya Swamy stated that no decision was taken in the cabinet meeting. "No decision has been taken yet, the subject has been deferred, and the cabinet meeting is over today. It will be discussed once again in the next Cabinet meeting. There is no question of rejecting or accepting; it's all about discussing the survey in the next Cabinet meeting. CM and DCM, along with 32 others, including all Ministers, discussed the matter thoroughly. Some other opinions of the ministers have to be discussed, as many wished to speak on the issue; that's why the subject has been deferred for the next cabinet meeting," the Minister said. The Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes has submitted the caste census (socio, economic, and educational survey) report to the Siddaramaiah-led cabinet. If released, the caste census report will be the second by a Congress-ruled state after Telangana. (ANI)
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