Rahul Gandhi demands representation according to population as Bihar census proves OBC + SC + ST = 84%

News Network

October 2, 2023

New Delhi, Oct 2: Welcoming the release of the caste survey by the Bihar government, I.N.D.I.A bloc parties on Monday accused the ruling BJP of running away from such an exercise, with the Congress pushing its slogan 'jitna abaadi, utna haq' (representation according to population).

Top Congress leader Rahul Gandhi cited Bihar's demographics to argue for proportional representation.

He said that the caste census of the Bihar government shows the importance of knowing the caste statistics of the country.

"The caste census of Bihar has revealed that OBC + SC + ST are 84 per cent in the state. Out of 90 secretaries of the Central Government, only 3 are OBC, who handle only 5% of India's budget! Therefore, it is important to know the caste statistics of India. The greater the population, the greater the rights – this is our pledge," Gandhi posted on 'X' (formerly known as Twitter).

According to the data released by the Bihar government, Other Backward Caste (OBC) and Extremely Backward Class (EBC) together account for 63 per cent of the state’s population.

Nitish Kumar's reaction

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar congratulated the entire team engaged in the work of caste-based survey stating that it will not only reveal castes but also give information about the economic condition of everyone. "Today, on the auspicious occasion of Gandhi Jayanti, the data of the caste-based census conducted in Bihar has been published. Many congratulations to the entire team engaged in the work of caste-based enumeration!" Bihar CM posted on 'X'.

BJP opposes caste survey

Meanwhile, the Opposition BJP in Bihar has voiced dissatisfaction with the caste survey conducted by the Nitish Kumar government, stressing that it did not give an idea of the "changed social and economic realities" over the years.

State BJP president Samrat Choudhary emphasised that his party had "given its consent" for the exercise and would make an assessment of the findings which have now been made public. "The BJP will give a statement on the findings after studying the same. However, we wish the survey had studied the social and economic conditions of different castes and placed these on record. We need to take into account the changed social and economic realities," Chaudhary told reporters in Patna.

It should be mentioned here that the findings are likely to favour the ruling 'Mahagathbandhan' which claims to represent the interests of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and Extremely Backward Classes (EBCs). The BJP, which has been generally seen as being pro-upper caste, has begun warming up to the changed political landscape, as evident from the rise of OBC leaders like Choudhary and Union minister Nityanand Rai who headed the party's state unit earlier.

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Israel killing Palestinian children in Gaza every day despite ceasefire: UNICEF

News Network

November 22,2025

The Israeli regime’s forces have killed two Palestinian children in the Gaza Strip every day since the ceasefire began in early October, UNICEF has warned.

The UN children’s agency said on Friday that Israeli forces continue to attack Palestinians in Gaza even though the agreement was meant to stop the killing.

“Since 11 October, while the ceasefire has been in effect, at least 67 children have been killed in conflict-related incidents in the Gaza Strip. Dozens more have been injured. That is an average of almost two children killed every day since the ceasefire took effect,” UNICEF spokesperson Ricardo Pires said in Geneva, reminding that each number in the statistics represents a child whose life had ended violently.

“These are not statistics,” he said. “Each child had a story, a family, and a future that was stolen from them.”

Data from Palestinian factions, human rights groups, and government bodies recorded since the US-brokered ceasefire deal went into effect on October 10 show that Israeli forces have carried out numerous attacks, each constituting a separate ceasefire violation.

UNICEF teams say they repeatedly continue to witness heart-wrenching scenes of fearful Palestinian children sleeping outdoors with amputated limbs, while others live as orphans in flooded, makeshift shelters.

“I saw this myself in August. There is no safe place for them. The world cannot normalize their suffering,” Pires said, lamenting that the UN could “do a lot more if the aid that is really needed was entering faster.”

The UNICEF spokesperson warned that with the advent of winter, the risks for hundreds of thousands of displaced children will increase.

He warned, “The stakes are incredibly high” for children as winter acts as a threat multiplier, where children have no heating, no insulation, and few blankets. He said respiratory infections rise.

“Too many children have already paid the highest price,” Pires said. “Too many are still paying it, even under a ceasefire. The world promised them it would stop and that we would protect them.”

“Now we must act like it,” the UNICEF spokesperson added.

Since the Israeli regime launched its genocidal war against Palestinians in Gaza in October 2023, it has killed nearly 70,000 people in the territory, most of them women and children, and injured over 170,000 more, while reducing most of the structures in the enclave to rubble.

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