New Delhi: The Congress on Wednesday welcomed DMK's plans to unveil a statue of minister VP Singh in Chennai on Nov 27, on death anniversary of the former prime minister.
In the late 1980s, VP Singh brought national focus on OBC politics through the Mandal Commission report, something the Congress opposed then but has now adopted.
Over the past months, both as former Congress chief and as a senior leader of the opposition alliance INDIA, Rahul Gandhi has been assuring that a fresh caste census would be conducted if the grouping comes to power in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
The caste census is the Congress plan to counter the BJP as the issue is supported by many of the INDIA allies like SP, RJD, JD-U and DMK. The JD-U-RJD-Congress-Left government in Bihar has already published state caste census data which is set to push similar demands from other states.
Recently, DMK senior leader TR Baalu personally met SP chief Akhilesh Yadav in Delhi to invite him for the unveiling of VP Singh’s statue and is set to invite other like-minded leaders as well. The Congress said it had not received the invite but welcomed the DMK’s move to honour a north Indian politician in south.
“We have not yet received the invite but I think it is a good move. It is not about north vs south. We need to look at it as social transformative politics. Caste census is the first step to look into the glaring disparities between the communities and we need to shape the development process accordingly,” AICC secretary in charge of Tamil Nadu Dr Sirivella Prasad told this channel.
The AICC functionary said there was no discomfort within the Congress as the party had earlier opposed the OBC politics but was now supporting it.
“There is no unease over the issue. All like-minded parties are coming together for a cause. The previous Congress-led UPA government had initiated the caste census but it has to be published. When we started talking about caste census, the PM denied the reality as he always does but the issue is relevant,” said Prasad. The AICC functionary further said that suggestions that the coming event would help revive the INDIA alliance which had gone slow during the five state poll were not correct.
“It is not like that. As INDIA partner both Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi have been talking about the caste census issue during the five state polls. It will be good that the Nov 7 event turns out to be a conclave of like-minded parties,” said Prasad. The AICC secretary in charge of Tamil Nadu said that the Congress-DMK alliance would continue for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
“We are in alliance with the DMK and the alliance will continue. But we will also make efforts wherever possible to regroup the Congress,” said Prasad. Sometime ago, DMK had organized a women’s conclave, which had become an occasion for the like-minded parties to come together for a cause. The Nov 27 event is expected to be on the same lines, said party insiders.
