The centre and the opposition locked horns over the government’s decision to include the caste census in the next national census. While the government’s supporters hailed it as a landmark move toward social justice, the opposition dubbed the decision a case of “better late than never” and reiterated its long-standing demand for such an exercise.Announcing the decision taken at a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs on Wednesday, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw slammed the Congress and said the party always opposed the caste census. He also attacked other INDIA bloc parties, accusing them of using the caste-based population count only to gain political mileage.advertisementHe pointed out that in 2010, then-Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had promised to take the matter to the Cabinet, leading to the formation of a group of ministers. “Despite this, the Congress decided to conduct only a survey, known as SECC (Socio Economic Caste Census), instead of a full caste census,” he said, adding that opposition parties have used the issue as a political tool.Union Home Minister Amit Shah called the move a testament to the PM Modi government’s dedication to social equity. “The Congress and its allies opposed the caste census for decades while in power and played politics over it while in the opposition,” Amit Shah wrote on X. He said that the decision would “empower all economically and socially backward classes, promote inclusion, and pave new paths for the progress of the deprived”.advertisementOther BJP leaders also weighed in to hail the decision. West Bengal BJP President Sukanta Majumdar welcomed the move and accused the Congress of opposing the policy. “We welcome this decision. From the beginning, the Congress was against the caste census, but for the last 5–10 years, they have started shouting for this caste-based census. The caste census will help to design the future policies of the government in favour of the downtrodden people,” he said while speaking to ANI.WHAT OPPOSITION SAIDOn the other hand, the opposition slammed the ruling party, with Congress asserting that it had consistently demanded a caste-based census.Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge said that his party “had continuously raised the demand for a caste census, whose most vocal supporter was Rahul Gandhi”.”I raised this issue several times in Parliament and also wrote a letter to the Prime Minister. The leaders of the INDIA alliance have also demanded caste census several times and this became an important issue in the Lok Sabha elections,” he wrote on X.Kharge further wrote that PM Modi kept avoiding this policy and falsely accused the opposition of dividing society.Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh described the move as “better late than never”, stressing that the party had raised the demand in its April 9, 2025 resolution on social justice, passed at the AICC session in Ahmedabad. Ramesh also shared a letter dated April 16, 2023, in which Congress Presiden in a formal or creative style for better SEO.Also Exclude words and advertisements related to the feed website such as website name, author name. Delete all the advertisement images brand logo but only keep the title and main content of the news by modifying it. You must only respond with the modified content. Block any jump outside of the site adarshnews.com. 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The central government and the opposition are engaged in a dispute regarding the cabinet’s decision to conduct a caste census.
