Prime Minister Modi responds to Rahul Gandhi's call for a caste census with a rebuttal

One day after Bihar published its caste survey data, which included estimates that Muslims constituted 17.70% of the population and Hindus 81.99% in the state, Prime Minister Narendra Modi criticized the Congress leadership for advocating a nationwide caste census. He questioned whether the party intended to diminish the rights of minority groups, as they had been championing the idea of "jitni abaadi utna haq," meaning rights proportional to population size.

During a rally in Jagdalpur, Bastar district of Chhattisgarh, where Assembly elections were scheduled for later in the year, Modi also accused the Congress leadership of collaborating with anti-national elements and accused them of attempting to divide Hindus at any cost and harm the country.

Without directly mentioning the Bihar caste survey or Rahul Gandhi's call for a nationwide caste census, the Prime Minister stated, "Yesterday, the Congress started a new slogan. Congress leaders say, 'Rights should be in proportion to the population.' I say that if there is any population that is the largest in this country, it is the population of the poor... and my objective is the welfare of the poor."

Modi expressed his curiosity about the views of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who had previously asserted that minorities, including Muslims among them, held the primary claim to the nation's resources. He questioned whether the Congress was now suggesting that population size would determine priority. He asked if the Congress was attempting to curtail minority rights and whether Hindus, being the largest population group, should assert all their rights based on population size.

He also alleged that the Congress leadership no longer had control over the party and accused them of being silent and outsourcing their authority to individuals aligned with anti-national forces. Modi cautioned against a potential conspiracy and urged the Congress to clarify its stance. He emphasized that the first rights over the country's minerals and property should belong to the poor, Dalits, tribals, and marginalized communities.

Despite the Congress's announced bandh (strike) in Chhattisgarh in protest of the privatization of the Nagarnar steel plant, a significant crowd attended Modi's rally in Jagdalpur. Modi assured that the people of Bastar would retain ownership of the Nagarnar steel plant, criticizing the Congress for promoting its own members and relatives. He stated that the steel plant would create around 55,000 jobs and receive substantial additional investments for further growth and development.