'Fruits Of Vikas Have Not Reached Dalits Under Nitish Kumar'

'We have 38 Dalits who are MLAs and ministers. But that does not mean the Dalits of Bihar are prospering.' 

Ashok Bharti, Chairman, National Confederation of Dalit and Adivasi Organisations (NACDAOR), has raised serious concerns about the persistent marginalisation of Dalits in Bihar.

Citing government data, he points out that over 84 percent of Dalit households in the state are landless and only seven percent own cultivable land.

Their average per capita income stands at just Rs 6,840 -- nearly 40 percent below the state average.

Bharti also highlights the scale of caste-based violence, with Bihar recording 85,684 cases of atrocities against Dalits between 2010 and 2022, averaging 17 incidents every day.

In response to these alarming realities, NACDAOR has released a 20-point agenda titled What Dalits Want, demanding urgent policy action and systemic reform.

"Take, for example, the Bihar government infrastructure projects. To build those infrastructure projects, who were uprooted from their homes? Dalits. 40,000 Dalits were displaced in Patna city. The homes that were built for them during Lalu Prasad Yadav's rule (in the 1990s) were demolished," Bharti tells Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.

Tell us about this report that you released.

This is our national body of Dalits and Adivasis since 2001. We have observed that whenever elections come, the aspirations of Dalits and the issues they have are normally unrecognised. Nobody speaks about them.

We have also seen castes that have only two to three percent of population. their members name pop up as chief ministerial candidate or even prime ministerial candidates.

In India, every fifth person is a Dalit but nobody discusses them.

But what about the benefit of reservations?

You tell me five other benefits for Dalits beside reservations.

But is it not the biggest benefit?

Reservation is the only benefit Dalits have and nothing else. Moreover, we do not even get reservations to the full extent. You can check this in Bihar. The report by the government of Bihar says that 1.13 percent of Dalits are in government jobs.

This was also tweeted on X by Tejashwi Yadav. He was a former deputy chief minister of Bihar and this proves there is complete lack of transparency in the system as to how many Dalits have really got government jobs in spite of reservations.

The lobby against Dalits always accused them of snatching away jobs in the name of reservations but in reality that is not happening on the ground.

Have you seen any kind of data personally?

Yes, I have seen it. Be it in education, health or jobs, it shows that the condition of Dalits is very bad. In the last 20 years of Nitish Kumar's rule the fruits of vikas have not reached Dalit homes for sure.

And this at a time when you have Dalit leaders like Chirag Paswan and Jitan Ram Manjhi who are part of the Narendra Modi government. How is it possible?

We have 38 Dalits who are MLAs and ministers. But that does not mean the Dalits of Bihar are prospering.

The Human Development Index parameter is very different for the Dalits of Bihar. And if you compare that with other castes then you will know the reality.

They are bad in education indicators or even livelihood indicators.

Take, for example, the Bihar government infrastructure projects. To build those infrastructure projects, who were uprooted from their homes? Dalits.

40,000 Dalits were displaced in Patna city. The homes that were built for them during Lalu Prasad Yadav's rule (in the 1990s) were also demolished.

These are the realities on ground. The government must realise this because what I am talking is not fiction but a real issue.

What about Dalit leaders like Chirag Paswan? Does he not know what is happening?

I will be surprised if he even knows about this data. There are only five percent plus Dalit children in higher education in Bihar whereas their population is 20 percent.

You can ask Chirag Paswan, does he know that according to the 2011 Census the details 62 percent of Dalits in Bihar were illiterate? This percentage is higher for Dalit women.

What is your expectation? Are you supporting the Rashtriya Janata Dal?

I am not supporting any party. I am only stating a fact, that any political party that will bring change in the lives of Dalits on the ground, we will support that party.

If Tejashwi is doing it, then we will go with him and if Nitish says he failed in changing the lives and apologises to rectify his mistake, then we will go with him. However, no rhetoric, Dalits needs delivery now.

Tejashwi has accepted our 10-point charter of demands.

Do you have ground support?

In 2018, my organisation, the National Confederation of Dalit Organizations, called for a Bharat Bandh and that was successful. You can google it and find out.

We raise issues to implement them. Our organisation is not that of traders but of leaders who want to change the lives of Dalits on the ground.

Are you in touch with other Dalit leaders in Bihar who want to bring about this change? What are they doing to bring about this change?

Manjhi did come to our office before he became chief minister of Bihar and spent four hours with us. But once he came to power he forgot us. Now, this is the sad reality of power.

Once you get power, you disown your own father, then why will he own the Dalits of Bihar?

We also met Chirag Paswan after his father passed away. We told him that there is a lack of Dalit leadership in India today and he had this opportunity to become one.

Chirag is more interested in applying tilak on his forehead and portray his image as Hanuman of Lord Ram and as Ambedkar of Dalits.

Chirag's portrayal in politics is not for Dalits. Did he ever say that he is proud to be a Dalit?

If you go back in time, you will find Dalit leaders like Babu Jagjivan Ram and Chirag's father Ram Vilas Paswan used to openly state they are proud to be Dalits.

No leader today states openly that he is proud to be a Dalit.

Let them not say that, but at the end they want Dalit votes.

Are you hopeful NACDOR's demands will be met?

We have given 20 points to political parties. Whichever party forms the government we will follow up with the new government to implement our 20 points.

If they don't do that after coming to power, we will then see what to do.