Patna: The Patna High Court on Thursday put an interim stay on the caste- based survey being conducted by the Bihar government.
A division bench of Chief Justice Vinod Chandran and Justice Madhuresh Kumar, after hearing the writ petition, passed the interim order and directed the government to stop any further survey.
The state government has also been asked to preserve the data related to caste-based census and not distribute it to anyone.
Abhinav Srivastava, the lawyer of the petitioner, argued that the Bihar government has no right to conduct a caste-based survey as it neither a legislative competence nor an executive order to sustain under Article 162 of the Constitution.
The petitioner also said that the survey is actually a census and the power to carry out such a survey is exclusively with the Union government.
As per the order, the bench said:
"We are of the considered opinion that the petitioners have made out a prima facie case against the continuation process of the proposed caste-based survey as attempted by the state of Bihar. There is a question raised on data integrity and security which has to be more elaborately addressed by the state."
"We also have the opinion that the state has no power to carry out caste-based surveys in a manner it is fashioned now. It would amount to a census thus impinging upon the legislative power of the Parliament.
"We also see the notification that the government intends to share data with the leaders of different political parties of the state Assembly. The bigger question arises here is the right of privacy which the Supreme Court has held to be a facet of right to life," it added.
"In such circumstances, we have directed the state government to immediately stop the caste-based survey and ensure that the data already collected are secured and not to share with anybody till final orders on this writ petition," the bench said, listing the next hearing on July 3.
Commenting on the HC order, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav said that he is committed to the caste-based census in Bihar and despite the interim stay, asserted that it will be conducted in future.
"Our fight for the caste-based survey will continue in the state. The people of Bihar are in favour of caste-based survey. It is in the interest of common people. "The decision of caste based survey was taken unanimously by all political parties of the state. It is not for any particular caste. It is for all," he said. "Bihar government was conducting a caste-based survey at its own expense as the Centre had declined to make a financial contribution to it. The BJP did not want the caste- based survey being conducted in the state. They are frightened that once the actual data would come out, they would know how many people are staying below the poverty line and how many of them are landless. Who is in good financial condition and who has not. It is in the interest of all caste and community people," Tejashwi Yadav said.
"Our fight for the caste-based survey will continue in the state. The people of Bihar are in favour of caste-based survey. It is in the interest of common people.
"The decision of caste based survey was taken unanimously by all political parties of the state. It is not for any particular caste. It is for all," he said.
"Bihar government was conducting a caste-based survey at its own expense as the Centre had declined to make a financial contribution to it. The BJP did not want the caste- based survey being conducted in the state. They are frightened that once the actual data would come out, they would know how many people are staying below the poverty line and how many of them are landless. Who is in good financial condition and who has not. It is in the interest of all caste and community people," Tejashwi Yadav said.
"As the interim order has come, the state government will analyse it and take the decision accordingly," he said.
"After the court order, the BJP is celebrating the decision and spreading lies that they are in favour of caste-based survey. If it was the case, then why have they not conducted in any BJP-ruled states or by the Centre," he added.
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