Even political parties that vociferously demand caste census today had mixed opinions about it at one point. However, the BJP has more or less remained opposed to the idea due to its ideological and electoral considerations. Tracing the Long, Complex History of Debate on Caste Census (thewire.in)
The Bihar caste census has caused quite a clamour. Counterintuitively, the survey has revealed that Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and Extremely Backward Classes (EBCs) together make up over 63% of the state’s population. Indeed, since its revelation, livid ultimatums by the opposition have demanded the extension of the exercise in other states. This curious insistence might make it seem that the opposition, which has bandwagoned for the census in the name of ‘social justice’, has always been in favour of enumerating caste. However, a longer history of the politics around the caste census reveals mixed attitudes on the statistical enumeration of caste by prominent political parties, even those that vociferously demand it today.
22/11/2023