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Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has started aggressively pursuing the idea of ‘caste census’ in the country with special focus and emphasis on the ‘Other Backward Classes’ (OBCs). While earlier he would include the SCs, the STs and the minorities also in his narrative to suggest that they were completely ignored, for the past some time he has been emphasising mainly on the OBCs.

 

So much so, he “admitted” during an ‘OBC Leadership-Bhagidari Nyay Mahasammelan’ (OBC leadership, participation and justice grand convention) on Friday in Delhi that he had done a lot for the SCs, the STs and the women during the Congress-led UPA government between 2004 and 2014, but had not done what he should have done for the OBCs during that period.

 

On earlier occasions, Rahul would refer to about “90” per cent of the Indian population being ignored and marginalised. In this “90” per cent, he would include about 50 per cent OBCs, 15 per cent SCs, 15 per cent minorities and 8 per cent STs (the tribals) and argue that they did not have any participation in the entire system whether political, bureaucratic, corporate and media space.

 

However, of late, he has been specially and exclusively referring to the OBCs, saying while the SCs and the STs were taken care of to some extent, and they did get certain benefits, but the OBCs were completely left out.

 

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Rahul’s agenda was best spelt out by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge that in case the OBCs, the SCs, the STs and the minorities unite and rally behind the Congress against the BJP, the Congress may cross well past 70 per cent votes and seats in the country. That is obviously wishful thinking.

 

While the SCs and STs are well defined and well identified, there is no proper or consolidated identity or definition of the OBCs in India. Broadly speaking, these people are identified as those who neither belong to the upper castes, nor the lower castes, but remain economically, socially, politically and educationally backward.

 

For example, the Yadavs and Kurmis in UP and Bihar, Patidars in Gujarat, Marathas in Maharashtra, Vanniyars in Tamil Nadu and even a section of Jats in Haryana and Rajasthan are counted as the OBCs. By now all these communities have had their share in everything, be it political or economic power and representation in the bureaucracy.

 

They were not categorised as such till the 1980s, when Indira Gandhi-appointed Mandal Commission identified certain underprivileged and marginalised castes, who did not fall under SC, ST or general category but were socially, economically and educationally quite marginalised. Gandhi sat on the report and did not implement it.

 

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It was only when Vishwanath Pratap Singh, a socialist, became the Prime Minister, that he implemented the Mandal Commission recommendations, whose main feature was providing 27 per cent reservations for the OBCs. The Commission had already mentioned the castes to be counted as the OBCs.

 

This led to country-wide protests and violence. India saw a mass uprising from the ‘general castes’ also described as the ‘upper castes’ as they felt that they were now being marginalised with reservations, which had reached the 50 per cent limit. It was the Supreme Court of India, which imposed a ceiling of 50 per cent reservation for all government jobs and educational institutions.

 

The BJP government introduced a provision of reservation for “economically weaker sections” (EWS) from among the general/ upper castes under which they were provided 10 per cent reservations. Effectively, now there is 60 per cent reservation in jobs and educational institutions, while 40 per cent have been left open.

 

Rahul Gandhi has been asserting that once he carries out the caste census across the country, he will push for “demolishing the 50 per cent wall” over reservations. Kharge recently asked if Prime Minister Narendra Modi could provide 10 per cent reservations to general castes, why not remove the bar on reservation for other castes.

 

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Congress in general and Rahul in particular have been suggesting that the reservation should be based on the population proportion of castes like the SCs, the STs and the OBCs. That means the OBCs should get about 50 per cent reservations as their population is roughly estimated to be that much. Gandhi has often been mentioning the minorities thus, indirectly suggesting reservation for them as well.

 

Rahul is apparently targeting the OBCs with a view to make them feel different from the general Hindu community. As he says that the RSS was trying to “wipe out” their history, his aim is obvious, to create a separate group from within the Hindu community, which will consider itself differently.

 

He recently minced no words in saying that the day the OBCs understood their own history, they will recognise the RSS as their biggest enemy. It is something like reinforcing a “separate identity” among the Dalits and making them feel different from the general Hindus.

 

This obviously is a calculated gamble to try to break the “unified and consolidated identity among the Hindus” that the RSS seeks to reaffirm and reinforce. The RSS has succeeded towards this end to a great extent and that is also the secret of its success, which gets translated into BJP’s frequent and regular electoral victories.

 

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That appears to be the reason for Rahul Gandhi’s slight change in his position and approach in emphasising on the “OBC” identity the same way Dr BR Ambedkar and subsequently Kanshi Ram asserted the Dalit identity. The Dalits did have several things in common, but it will not be easy to package diverse groups of people and make them believe that they have a “common identity” that has no linguistic, cultural, caste or religious basis.

 

Rahul's top priority and emphasis on creating an "OBC" segment and reaping the electoral dividends can be gauged from the fact that in last two days, the Congress has held two mega events in the national capital exclusively focussing on the OBCs, where it prominently projected two OBC faces, Ashok Gehlot and Bhupesh Baghel, former chief ministers of Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, respectively.