"There's Demand Everywhere": Rivals Nitish Kumar, Tejashwi Yadav To Meet PM Modi On Caste-Based Census

Nitish Kumar had said earlier this month that if the Centre doesn't hold a caste-based Census, Bihar may consider enumerating castes in the state.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar will on Monday lead an all-party delegation from his state to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi to demand a caste-based Census. The team will include opposition leader Tejashwi Yadav of the Rashtriya Janata Dal, a strong critic of the state government, and the state Mines and Geology Minister Janak Ram, a BJP legislator and a relative lightweight. "The respected Prime Minister has granted time at 11 am the day after tomorrow. An entire list of the delegation has been sent to him and also members of the ten parties going to the meeting," Mr Kumar told reporters in Patna today. "Right now, we are going to request that the Census must be conducted based on caste. It is up to the Centre to decide," he said.   If such an exercise is conducted for the whole nation, the Chief Minister said, it would be "very beneficial". He told media persons that there was demand everywhere for such an exercise.