Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], June 12 : After the Karnataka government decided to carry out a re-enumeration exercise for the 2015 caste survey report, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) hit out at the Congress, accusing it of committing "injustice" against the backward classes.
Criticising the Congress high command's attempts to engage in politics over the issue of caste census and accusing them of diverting attention, BJP MLC N Ravikumar objected to the taxpayer money spent in crores for the 2015 survey if its data were to be rejected in the end.
Ravikumar said that Congress' suggestion to re-enumerate the data collected under the 2015 social and educational survey was a "slap" to the Siddaramaiah-led government, which originally commissioned and supported it during its first term.
"The Congress high command has done injustice to the backward classes. The Congress high command also slammed Siddaramaiah, saying that it was 10 years old and the figures were old," Ravikumar, also the Chief Whip of Opposition in the Karnataka Legislative Council, told reporters here.
He said that Siddaramaiah intended to implement the caste census figures in the survey report submitted by the Permanent Backward Classes Commission, but announced a resurvey after returning from Delhi.
"Many in Congress had objected to the caste census figures. However, Siddaramaiah had said that he would implement it. But he says that he would conduct a new caste census after returning from Delhi. If so, why did he spend 165 crore of taxpayer money? Siddaramaiah, who was called the champion of the backward classes, has done injustice to them," he added.
He further accused the Karnataka government of "covering up" the Chinnaswamy stadium stampede that claimed 11 young lives. He said that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar were called by the top leadership of Congress in Delhi to bring forth the caste census issue to "hide" the recent stampede tragedy.
"In Karnataka, the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister have been called to Delhi to cover up the tragedy of the death of 11 youths in a stampede during the RCB victory celebration," Ravikumar said.
This comes after Siddaramaiah said that they have accepted the suggestion made by top Congress leadership to re-enumerate the case census data.
"Discussions were held regarding the caste census as concerns were raised by some organisations, religious heads, and even a few ministers. The report submitted on the caste census has been accepted in principle. There is an agreement that a caste enumeration should be conducted. We have also agreed to this," he said.