Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday announced that once the party emerges victorious in the state assembly elections, they intend to carry out a caste census in Madhya Pradesh. He made this declaration while speaking at a public rally in Sagar, situated within Madhya Pradesh's Bundelkhand region. Kharge's speech in the election-bound Madhya Pradesh holds noteworthy importance for the Congress for various reasons.
To begin with, this is Kharge's first visit to the state after his assumption of the Congress presidency. Secondly, he attacked the BJP leadership at both the national and state levels, shortly following Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address to Madhya Pradesh voters, slightly over a week ago. Thirdly, the visit to Madhya Pradesh arrives promptly after the Congress, under his guidance, secured a significant triumph in his native state of Karnataka. It is clear he aims to sustain that favorable momentum.
"I promise that when Congress will come into power farmers will be in debt relief. LPG will be available at Rs 500. Women will get Rs 1500 per month. For government workers old pension scheme. Till 100 units no Electricity bill. We will also have a caste census in the state as well. Now we have 6 backward-class people on our working committee..." Kharge said.
Kharge's rally initially scheduled for August 13 in Sagar had to be called off. This decision was made following Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ceremony on August 12, where he laid the foundation for a memorial and temple honoring Sant Ravidas, a revered figure among Scheduled Castes. This event also included a public gathering in Sagar.
The district of Sagar lies within Madhya Pradesh's Bundelkhand region, which encompasses six districts: Sagar, Chattarpur, Tikamgarh, Nimari, Damoh, and Panna. These districts account for a total of 26 assembly seats, out of which the Congress currently holds only 9. Six of these seats are reserved exclusively for Scheduled Caste (SC) candidates. In the 2018 state elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) secured victories in five of these seats — Bina, Naryoli, Jatara, Chandala, and Hatta — while the Congress managed to secure the seat in Gunnor.
Zooming in on the Sagar district itself, the BJP achieved success in six out of the eight seats, leaving the remaining two for the Congress. As per the 2011 Census, Madhya Pradesh's Dalit population stood at 1.13 crore.
During the 2018 elections, the BJP won 18 out of the 35 reserved SC seats in Madhya Pradesh, while the Congress secured 17, a substantial increase from its tally of four seats in 2013.
In an effort to connect with Dalit voters, the BJP government in Madhya Pradesh constructed a temple for Sant Ravidas in Maihar town, situated within the Satna district bordering Uttar Pradesh. During its rule from 2004 to 2014, the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre allocated a significant package of Rs 8,000 crore for the development of the Bundelkhand region.
The 2018 elections saw the Congress forming a successful coalition government under Kamal Nath after securing 114 seats in the 230-member House. The BJP, with only 109 seats, lost its grip on power. However, in March 2020, the Kamal Nath government faced a major crisis when MLAs loyal to Jyotiraditya Scindia rebelled, leading to the BJP's return to power with Shivraj Singh Chouhan as the leader.
