Bihar Junction: Rahul reaches out to EBCs, vows law against atrocities

Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday reached out to the numerically powerful extremely backward classes (EBCs) of Bihar, promising, among other things, a law for protection against atrocities, on the lines of the SC/ST Act, if the INDIA bloc is voted to power in the state.

He vowed to break the barrier of 50 per cent reservation, imposed by the apex court while passing a judgment on the Mandal Commission reservation.

“There is a large population of backward classes, EBCs, Dalits and minorities who have been deprived of justice. We want a caste census so that justice can be ensured to all according to their population…,” he said while addressing a press conference in Patna after a CWC meeting.

“We have come out with a vision after talking to EBCs,” he said, slamming Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for “not doing anything for them”.

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, who was also present, said after social justice, economic justice was needed for the EBCs. “Those who are in power are abusing the late Karpoori Thakur,” he said, stressing that during the Lalu-Rabri regime, the reservation for backward classes was increased.

“We had pleaded with the Centre to include the increased reservation in Schedule 9 of the Constitution. However, the BJP government did not do it. The BJP is ‘arakshan virodhi and chor’,” he said, stressing that the state government was led by corrupt officials, who did not want to implement reservation.

Earlier, the Congress held its extended CWC meeting at Sadaquat Ashram. The CWC is being held in Patna after a gap of 85 years.

Addressing the CWC, party president Mallikarjun Kharge said the country was facing serious domestic and international problems. Taking a dig at the Prime Minister, he said Modi’s friend (US President Donald Trump) was causing serious problems for India.

He alleged that the special intensive revision (SIR) exercise in the state was aimed at disenfranchising Dalits and the downtrodden. He said democracy could not survive without a transparent Election Commission.

The meeting adopted a resolution asking the Bihar electorate to vote for the INDIA bloc as “survival of democracy is at stake”.

Ahead of the Assembly poll, the bloc has made a pitch to woo the EBCs by releasing the “Ati Pichhada Nyay Sankalp”.

It includes creating a law to prevent atrocities against the EBCs. It also includes raising reservation for the EBCs in panchayat and municipal bodies from 20 to 30 per cent.

It also vows to set up a commission to look into further benefits for the EBCs, 50 per cent reservation in private educational institutes and creation of an authority to ensure that the quota is implemented.

Unlike other states where backward castes are put in one block — OBCs, in Bihar, the OBCs comprise the Yadav, Kurmi, Baniya and Kushha castes, considered politically and financially powerful.

There is another block called the EBCs comprising 112 smaller castes, which constitute 36 per cent of the population.

Individually these castes are numerically small, but together they hold the key to elections in Bihar.

Till 2000, Lalu enjoyed substantial support from this group. However, after the RJD’s support base was dominated by Muslims and Yadavs, the EBCs deserted Lalu and went over to the NDA. It was the EBC switchover that led to the defeat of Lalu and the Congress alliance in the 2005 Assembly poll. Since then, the EBCs have largely remained with the BJP-JDU alliance.

Though Rahul and Tejashwi put up a joint front at the press conference, the Congress did not announce him as the CM face of the alliance.

“The matter will be sorted out after the elections,” said party leader Salman Khurshid. The seat distribution also did not come up. The Congress is reportedly demanding 75 seats, while the RJD is offering it just 55, according to sources. There are 243 Assembly seats in Bihar.