Ranchi, May 19 (IANS) The Congress’s Jharkhand unit on Tuesday demanded that the Centre implement a Sarna religion code in the ongoing Census to ensure a distinct religious identity for tribal communities.

Addressing a press conference at the party office here, state Congress President Keshav Mahto Kamlesh and CLP leader Pradeep Yadav said that more than 1.25 crore people in the country follow the tribal Sarna faith, but there is no separate code or column for it in the Census forms.

They said this is a decades-old demand of tribal communities, which continues to be ignored by the Central government.

The leaders alleged that the Centre does not want to recognise the independent religious and cultural identity of tribal people. They asserted that the party will continue to raise the issue of the Sarna religion code both on the streets and in the legislature.

Raising concerns over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, the Congress leaders claimed that the names of a large number of voters are being removed across the country.

They alleged that the process could unfairly delete crores of voters, affecting democratic rights. In Jharkhand, too, where the Election Commission is set to launch the exercise from June, the party said it will closely monitor developments.

They added that the Congress has already begun activating its organisation down to the booth level in the state to ensure that voters’ names remain on the electoral rolls.

The leaders also criticised the Centre’s economic policies and rising inflation. Yadav said prices of fuel and essential commodities continue to increase, adding to the financial burden on common people.

Referring to the alleged NEET paper leak case, the Congress demanded a fair probe by the Central government. Yadav said repeated irregularities in the examination system are a matter of serious concern for students’ future.

–IANS

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