"Open betrayal of trust of Bahujans": Rahul Gandhi criticises centre over "shocking" response on caste census

New Delhi [India], December 3 (ANI): Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday lambasted the centre over its response to queries regarding the impending caste census, saying that the Narendra Modi government's lack of a concrete framework and time-bound plan was an "open betrayal of trust with country's Bahujans".
Gandhi, Leader of Opposition (LoP) Lok Sabha, also flagged the issue of the centre not holding any discussions with the public on the caste census.
"In Parliament, I asked the government a question about caste census - their response is shocking. No concrete framework, no time-bound plan, no discussion in Parliament, and no dialogue with the public. There is not even any desire to learn from the strategies of successful caste censuses in other states. This stance of the Modi government on caste census is an open betrayal of trust of the country's Bahujans," the Congress leader posted on X.
Replying to Gandhi's query regarding the procedure and timeline for the census, Union Minister of State (MoS) Home Nityanand Rai informed the Lok Sabha that the 2027 census will be conducted in two phases from April to September 2026, over a period of 30 days.
Meanwhile, the population enumeration will be conducted from February 2027, except in certain regions, such as Ladakh and other snow-bound areas, where it will be conducted in September 2026.
"Census 2027 will be conducted in two phases, namely Phase I - House Listing and Household Census, which will be conducted over a period of 30 days from April to September 2026 as per the convenience of the State/UT Governments, followed by Phase II - Population Enumeration (PE)," Rai said in a written reply.
"The population enumeration will be conducted during February 2027 with reference date of 00:00 hours on March 1, 2027 except in the Union Territories of Ladakh and Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and the snow covered non-synchronous areas of the states of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, where the population enumeration will be conducted during September 2026 with reference date of 00:00 hours of the 1st day of October, 2026," it further read.
Responding to Gandhi's query about seeking input from public representatives or the public, Rai said that the census questionnaires are finalised "before each census based on suggestions/inputs received from various ministries, departments, organisations and census data users, etc."
"The drafted census questionnaires are tested in the field to assess their feasibility before finalisation. Pre-testing is carried out," the written reply in Lok Sabha read.
On Gandhi's final query, whether the government was considering experiences of conducting caste surveys by different states, Rai said, "The Census has a history of over 150 years. The next Census takes into account the experiences gained from previous censuses. Prior to each Census, suggestions are also sought from relevant stakeholders."
The centre has announced plans to conduct the Census in 2027, with the intent notified in the Gazette on June 16, 2025.
The Census will be conducted in two phases: Phase I - House Listing and Housing Census, scheduled from April to September 2026, and Phase II - Population Enumeration, set for February 2027.
A key feature of this Census will be the inclusion of caste enumeration for the first time in over 70 years. (ANI)