Hyderabad: Amid the Bharatiya Janata Party’s opposition to Thomas Piketty’s inclusion in a panel to analyse the findings of a caste survey in Telangana, the French economist has said that the survey can be a very useful tool to address inequalities and other challenges, and that he is “very happy to be part of the effort”.
“Caste surveys, such as the Telangana one, are very important in order to design the right policy responses to Indian inequalities and underdevelopment,” Piketty wrote in an email, responding to ThePrint’s questions about his role in the panel.
“Of course we already know that Indian inequalities are a complex mixture of ancient features (caste-based discrimination and privileges) and modern money-based capitalist inequalities, including crony capitalism in some cases, which unfortunately the current government has largely encouraged,” said the economist, in apparent reference to the Narendra Modi government.
“But in practice, we have very limited tools to disentangle the various aspects. The Telangana caste survey can be a very useful tool to address Indian challenges, and I am very happy to participate in this effort.”
The Revanth Reddy-led Congress government had conducted the Socio-Economic, Educational, Employment, Political and Caste (SEEEPC) Survey 2024 in November and December last year, in line with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s “Jitni abadi, utni hissedari (rights proportionate to population size)” push—an issue he had raised before the November 2023 assembly polls and has advocated for on a national scale.
Last week, the Telangana government announced the setting up of an 11-member expert committee headed by retired Supreme Court judge Justice B. Sudershan Reddy to study the survey report and suggest evidence-based policies in various state government sectors and schemes. BJP leaders were quick to question the presence of a foreign expert on a panel handling the country’s sensitive demographic data. Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Bandi Sanjay Kumar even alleged that the Congress government has included “Urban Naxals” in the panel.
Other members of the committee include Shantha Sinha, first chairperson of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) during the UPA regime, University Grants Commission chairman (2006-2011) Sukhdeo Thorat, social activist Nikhil Dey, political theorist Kancha Ilaiah, environmentalist Purushotham Reddy, Belgian-born Indian social activist-economist Jean Dreze, and Praveen Chakravarty of All India Professionals’ Congress. The panel has been given a month’s time to submit its recommendations.
While the SEEEPC survey report was not made public, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy had announced in the state assembly in February that it had found that Other Backward Classes make up 46 percent of Telangana’s population, and the inclusion of Muslims in Backward Classes takes the figure to 56 percent. The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) and BJP have, however, alleged undercounting.
Piketty did not respond to ThePrint’s question on BJP’s criticism and allegations with respect to his inclusion in the committee.
This is at least the second instance of Congress consulting the noted economist. Piketty, professor at the Paris School of Economics, had previously advised the party on its proposal of a Nyuntam Aay Yojana or NYAY, the minimum income guarantee promised by it during the 2019 general elections.
Speaking to ThePrint on the condition of anonymity, a panel member said that the BJP’s concerns are misplaced, adding that he is yet to meet the French expert. “We, available members, have met twice at the Telangana Secretariat so far, and Piketty is yet to join the discussions, which I hope will be the next time we meet later this week. I think he will join virtually.”
From now on, the panel’s deliberations will take place at the state-run Dr Marri Channa Reddy HRD Institute at Jubilee Hills in Hyderabad, the member said.
Piketty has authored several articles in major Economics journals and written multiple books. His major historical and theoretical work is based on the interplay of economic development, distribution of income and wealth, and political conflict. He is also associated with the World Inequality Lab and the World Inequality Database, and is one of the initiators of the Manifesto for the democratisation of Europe.
BJP leaders like Sudhanshu Trivedi have accused the Congress of not trusting Indian economists and experts. G.V.L. Narasimha Rao remarked last week, “What if a foreigner spins the data to fit a global narrative?”
Amit Malviya, BJP’s IT in-charge, wrote in a post on X: “Is it wise to entrust sensitive demographic data to a foreigner? Were there no qualified Indian experts capable of handling this task? What explains this eagerness to expose our social fabric to external influences, allowing outsiders to dissect our divisions and potentially fuel discord with their subjective interpretations?”
Addressing a gathering in his constituency Karimnagar Sunday, MoS Bandi Sanjay said that citizens shared information about their lands, houses and other properties out of trust in the state government, and that such data should be kept confidential. “But Revanth Reddy has handed it over to a foreigner. That person is included in the committee. Is there any guarantee for the properties of Telangana’s people now?”
(Edited by Mannat Chugh)
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