Modi govt wants to put caste census in cold storage: Congress
New Delhi (PTI): The Congress on Sunday alleged that the government wants to put the caste census in "cold storage" and that Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants to amend the women's reservation law with the agenda of "misleading" the country.
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh claimed the Modi government wants to amend Article 334-A on the grounds that the "caste census results will not be available for a few years", overlooking the fact that both Bihar and Telangana completed the comprehensive caste survey in less than six months.
Article 334-A includes the provision that reservation of seats for women would take effect following an exercise of census and delimitation. The government has, however, decided to delink the implementation of the women's quota from the census exercise, which will include caste enumeration, to fast-track it.
"It is clear that the Modi government wants to put the caste census in cold storage," Ramesh claimed on X, dubbing it the "hidden agenda".
There was no immediate response from the government to the Congress' allegations.
Ramesh said that the government had been averse to a caste case and pointed out that on July 20, 2021, it answered a question in Lok Sabha stating that it decided as a matter of policy not to enumerate caste-wise population other than SCs and STs in the Census.
On September 21, 2021, the Modi government filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court that it has taken a conscious policy decision not to conduct a caste census, Ramesh said.
"On April 28, 2024, in a television interview, the Prime Minister accused the Congress of having an urban naxal mindset for championing the cause of a caste census," the Congress leader said.
On April 30, 2025, as the country was still in shock after the Pahalgam terror attack that occurred a few days earlier, the Modi government suddenly announced that the caste census would be conducted as a part of the upcoming census, he said.
Ramesh pointed out that in a widely-reported press conference on March 30, 2026, the Registrar-General and Census Commissioner said most of the results of the ongoing Census 2027 would be available in 2027 itself since the entire Census is being conducted digitally.
"But now the Modi government wants to amend Article 334-A, saying that the caste census results will not be available for a few years - overlooking the fact that both Bihar and Telangana completed the comprehensive caste survey in less than six months," he said.
The prime minister is, as usual, "misleading" the country and engaging in massive deception, Ramesh said.
"He now wants to amend what the Parliament had unanimously passed in September 2023. The hidden agenda is simply not to have the caste census," the Congress general secretary said.
The Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India, Mritunjay Kumar Narayan, at the presser on March 30, had asked people to provide accurate information to census enumerators, asserting that individual data will remain confidential and cannot be used as evidence or to obtain any benefit under any scheme.
Asked about caste being included in the Census and the apprehension that people may not furnish correct information, Narayan said at a press conference the data related to caste will be collected during the second phase, and the questions will be decided after exhaustive discussions.
"Earlier, data was collected on physical paper, which took a lot of time in digitisation. We will start collecting digital data from the outset, so we will be able to issue it very early. Many data sets will be published in 2027," Narayan had said.
The Congress' attack on the government comes days ahead of the three-day sitting of Parliament, during which the government is set to bring bills to implement the Women's Reservation Act before the 2029 parliamentary polls and increase the number of Lok Sabha seats to 816, with 273 reserved for women.
The Congress has accused the Modi government of playing politics in the name of the women's reservation law and asserted that the proposed delimitation exercise linked to it was "not constitutional" and could have "grave consequences" that warrant thorough deliberation after the ongoing assembly polls.
At a Congress Working Committee meeting, it was decided that Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge would call a meeting of top leaders of all opposition parties, most likely on April 15, to discuss and formulate a joint strategy for the "special session" of Parliament from April 16 to 18.
In a letter to the prime minister, Kharge has said it would be "impossible" to have any useful discussion on the women's quota law without details of delimitation and other aspects, and demanded that an all-party meeting be called on the matter after the current round of state polls gets over on April 29.
Kharge said that calling Parliament's special sitting amid state polls reinforces the belief that the government is hurrying the implementation of the women's reservation law for "political mileage".
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MP: Protest over Dhoudan dam continues for eighth day, work stalled
Chhatarpur (MP) (PTI): Tribals displaced due to the proposed Dhoudan dam under the ambitious Ken-Betwa river-linking project in Madhya Pradesh continued their protest for the eighth consecutive day on Sunday, halting work at the site.
Villagers affected by the project in Panna district, including Majhgawan and Runj, remained stationed at the construction site pressing for their demands.
Protesters have been demanding a compensation package of Rs 12.5 lakh for displaced families, similar to what they claim has been sought for those affected by other dams in the region.
Panna Additional Collector Alok Marko and SDM Satish Nagvanshi reached the protest site during the day and held detailed discussions with the agitators.
The officials said that the compensation had been disbursed in accordance with government guidelines and the land acquisition law.
"In the Runj project, 99 per cent payment has been completed, while more than 90 per cent compensation has been paid in villages affected by the Ken-Betwa project, including Kateri, Baleta, Gadra and Koni. If any name has been left out, we are ready to conduct a fresh survey based on documents," Nagvanshi said.
The administration had taken along a representative of the displaced persons to provide photocopies of records, he said.
Protesters are demanding that the earlier compensation package of Rs 5 lakh for Majhgawan and Vishramganj dams be increased to Rs 12.5 lakh, at par with that of the Dhodan dam displaced persons. The administration, however, has termed the demand "policy-wise impossible", as the relevant awards had been passed years ago.
Social activist Amit Bhatnagar, who is leading the agitation, rejected the administration's claims, alleging that only 60 per cent of the affected people have received compensation and there are major discrepancies.
"If gram sabhas and procedures have been conducted constitutionally, we will end the protest, but we will not part with even an inch of land through unconstitutional means," he said.
As the protest site falls within the core area of the Panna Tiger Reserve, the administration has tightened security arrangements.
Collector Parth Jaiswal appealed to the protesters to maintain law and order in the restricted zone of the tiger reserve and resolve the issue through dialogue.
He added that a survey is underway, and no eligible person will be deprived of compensation.
A team of doctors arrived at the site to examine the protesters, who were camping there with essential supplies, but returned without conducting check-ups.
