The government’s decision to include caste data in the upcoming national census has sparked a heated argument, with both the ruling BJP and opposition parties claiming credit for it.
On Wednesday, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced that the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs has approved adding caste information to the next census, marking a major policy change.
The Congress party quickly credited Rahul Gandhi for pushing for this decision. They said it was a win for his vision, as he had long advocated for a caste census. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh wrote on social media, “Rahul Gandhi Ji said, ‘Start counting.’ Now the Modi government is arranging to count. When our leader raised this issue, the ruling party mocked him. But now, the Modi government has agreed to conduct a caste census, which is a victory for millions of people demanding their rights.”
On the other hand, BJP’s Amit Malviya argued that Congress has always opposed a caste census. He pointed out that Congress governments had never included caste data in past censuses. Malviya reminded that in 2010, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had promised a caste census, but instead, only a survey was done, not a full census. BJP’s Kiren Rijiju also criticized Congress, saying the party had opposed caste census and reservations in the past.
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Meanwhile, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Revanth Reddy expressed pride, saying that the Telangana government’s work for OBC empowerment had inspired the central government to include caste data in the census.
A caste census involves collecting information about people’s caste during the national census. In a country like India, where caste affects many aspects of life, this data can help create better policies for equality and social justice. Caste was included in censuses during British rule from 1881 to 1931, but after India’s independence, caste data was only collected for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs).
