Modi govt announces caste enumeration in next census, slams Oppn for using it as 'political tool'

The census exercise was to commence in April 2020 but got delayed due to the Covid pandemic.

New Delhi: In a major decision, the government on Wednesday announced that caste enumeration will be included in the next census exercise in a "transparent" manner and slammed the opposition parties for using caste survey as a "political tool".

The Congress and other opposition parties have been vociferously demanding a nationwide caste census, making it a major election issue, and some states like Bihar, Telangana and Karnataka have conducted such surveys.

The government decision comes ahead of assembly elections in Bihar, where several parties including some BJP allies have been coming out in support of the caste census.

Announcing the decision taken by the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the census comes under the purview of the Centre, but some states have done caste enumeration in the name of surveys "non-transparently" which has created doubts in the society.

Noting that caste was not included in all census operations conducted since Independence, Vaishnaw alleged that the Congress governments have always opposed caste census and the party had used the issue as a political tool.

"Considering all these facts and to ensure that the social fabric is not disturbed by politics, caste enumeration should be transparently included in the Census instead of surveys," he said, adding that this will strengthen the social and economic structure of our society while the nation continues to progress.

The minister alleged that the states ruled by opposition parties have done caste surveys for political reasons and emphasised that the Modi government has resolved to transparently include caste enumeration in the forthcoming pan-India census exercise.

The opposition I.N.D.I.A. bloc had made caste census a major poll plank in the recent elections, with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi promising representation to people based on their population.

"Better late than never," Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X, reacting to the government announcement.

He said the party had raised the issue in its resolution on social justice, which was passed in Ahmedabad on April 9, 2025, and also shared an April 16, 2023 letter of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in which he had demanded that the decennial census be carried out and a comprehensive caste census be made a part of it.

The last nationwide census was completed in 2011 and the next decadal one was to commence in April 2020 but got delayed due to the Covid pandemic.

Though Home Minister Amit Shah had said late last year that the census would be conducted "very soon", there is no clarity as yet on when exactly the exercise would be carried out.

"In the CCPA meeting held today under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji a message of strong commitment towards social equality and rights of every section has been given by deciding to include caste census in the upcoming census," Shah wrote on X in Hindi.

He alleged the Congress and its allies opposed the caste census for decades while in power and played politics over it while in the opposition.

"This decision will empower all economically and socially backward classes, promote inclusion, and pave new paths for the progress of the deprived," he said.

Vaishnaw said in 2010, the then prime minister Manmohan Singh had assured the Lok Sabha that the matter of caste census should be considered in the Cabinet. A group of ministers was formed to consider this after most of the political parties had recommended a caste census.

"Despite this, the Congress government decided to conduct only a survey instead of a caste census. That survey is known as SECC.

"It is well understood that the Congress and its INDI alliance partners have used Caste Census only as a political tool," the minister alleged.

The first caste enumeration in independent India was conducted in 2011 and was known as the Socio Economic and Caste Census (SECC) 2011.

The census during the British rule between 1881 and 1931 included caste enumeration, but post-independence the government decided in 1951 not to include caste in the census, except for SCs and STs.

Vaishnaw said that under Article 246 of the Constitution, the subject 'census' is listed in the Union list under entry 69 and according to the Constitution, the Census is a Union subject.

He said some states have conducted surveys to enumerate castes.

Some states have done this well, while some others have conducted such surveys purely from a political angle in a non-transparent way. Such surveys have created doubts in the society, he said.

"Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modiji, the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs has decided today (30th April 2025) that caste enumeration should be included in the forthcoming Census," the minister said.

"This demonstrates that our government is committed to the values and interests of our society and country, like in the past when our government had introduced 10 per cent reservation for the economically weaker sections of the society without causing stress in any section of the society," Vaishnaw said at the briefing.