New Delhi: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has demanded that the BJP-led government at the Centre should immediately conduct the decennial Census and that a comprehensive ‘Caste Census’ be made its integral part.
In his letter addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday, he wrote, “In the absence of an updated Caste Census, I am afraid a reliable data base so very essential for meaningful social justice and empowerment programmes, particularly for OBCs, is incomplete. This Census is the responsibility of the Union Government.”
Citing that the regular decennial Census was to be carried out in 2021 but it has not yet been conducted, Kharge said, ” We demand that it be done immediately and that a comprehensive Caste Census be made its integral part.”
The Congress president said he and his colleagues raised this demand earlier in both House of Parliament on a number of occasions also the leaders from other Opposition parties.
“You are aware that for the first time the UPA Government conducted a Socio Economic and Caste Census (SECC during 2011-12 covering some 25 crore households. For a number of reasons, however, the caste data could not get published even though Congress and other MPs demanded its release after your government came to power in May 2014,” Kharge added.
