New Delhi, April 30: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has on Tuesday welcomed the Centre's decision to include caste enumeration in the upcoming national census, calling it a long-pending step.
In a press meet, Rahul said the Congress has been demanding a caste census and the government had "suddenly, after 11 years" taken this decision. "We had said in the Parliament that we will make the Caste Census happen. We had also said that we would scrap the 50% cap, the artificial wall that is in place. Narendra Modi used to say that there are just four castes. Don't know what happened, but suddenly after 11 years, Caste Census has been announced."
He stressed the need for a clear timeline and offered support in designing the process, citing Telangana’s caste survey as a national model.
Gandhi reiterated the Congress’s long-standing demand for a caste census and called for removing the 50% reservation cap. He emphasized that the census should lead to a broader development framework, addressing the participation of OBCs, Dalits, and Adivasis. He also urged the government to implement Article 15(5), which provides for reservations in private educational institutions.
Meanwhile, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the Cabinet, led by PM Modi, approved caste enumeration in the census to ensure social harmony and accurate data. He noted that earlier surveys were politically motivated, and a unified census approach would strengthen the country.
