Patna, Sep 3 (IANS): Bihar Water Resource Minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary on Tuesday criticised the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) Tejashwi Yadav for taking credit for conducting the caste-based survey in Bihar, saying it was Chief Minister Nitish Kumar who gave go-ahead to survey and also implemented it.

“Tejashwi Yadav is claiming that he was instrumental in conducting the caste-based survey in the state. However, everyone knows that Nitish Kumar was the Chief Minister and without him, it could not have been possible to conduct the survey,” the minister said.

He added that the LoP can claim anything but the truth is that it was Nitish Kumar who not only allowed the caste-based survey but also implemented it.

On September 1, LoP Tejashwi Yadav held a protest sit-in to demand the inclusion of the 65 per cent reservation policy in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution and also advocated for a nationwide caste-based census.

He also accused JD-U of not effectively defending the reservation policy during the hearings in the Patna High Court, leading to its annulment.

The LoP has also announced that he would launch a “Jan Samwad Yatra” starting on September 10, aiming to engage and gain the support of the people of Bihar on the issues of caste-based reservation and a nationwide caste census.

Bihar Water Resource Minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary clarified that the 65 per cent reservation policy in Bihar cannot be included in the Ninth Schedule as the law associated with it was annulled by the Patna High Court.

He added that since the Patna High Court has already struck down this law, it no longer holds legal status and thus cannot be added to the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution, a provision that protects laws from judicial review.

He said that Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had initiated a caste-based survey in Bihar, which led to the decision to increase the reservation to 65 per cent for backward classes, Dalits, and tribal people in the state.

“Also, the government has decided to allocate 10 per cent reservation for economically weaker sections among the upper castes,” the minister said.