Caste system in India has undergone a sea change in the century past. It was very much different during the British Raj in India from what happened to it after the independence of India in 1947. The Constitution of India provided for the first time a legal protection to the victims of caste bias prevailing in the society, and reservation to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes to uplift their social and economic status.

The caste census conducted during the British Raj was found to be reinforcing the caste system and hence the practice was severely criticized by India’s political thinkers including Dr B R Ambedkar. Moreover, the recording of castes was found to be faulty. The 1901 census had recorded 1646 distinct castes, which had increased to 4147 in 1931. It had a very bad impact on the society, and hence under the pressure of our leaders of the freedom movement, the British government dropped the practice in 1941 census.

This gives us an indication that the caste census this time will also have numerous problems. Caste system is prevalent not only among Hindus, but also among other religious groups. It may create problems during headcounts. Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs are also divided in castes in practice. There are about 300 recorded castes among Christians, and 500 castes among Muslims in practice, though their theoretical position is that there are no caste divisions among them. There are Dalit, Tribal, and OBC in all religions. In fact, wherever Hindus went, they went with their castes even after converting to another religions. Dalits, Tribals, and OBCs have been demanding reservations irrespective of their religions. The issue will need special consideration before actual headcounts.

Nevertheless, after the headcounts, we will have a knowledge as to how the caste system is currently functioning in the country, after a gap of almost 100 years. During the 1951 census, the government of India had only allowed headcounts of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. It did not give the clear picture, and hence by 1961, the central government have given permission to stated for headcounts of OBCs, if they so desired. That was a sort of survey but the national caste census was refused.

Mandal Commission in 1980 brought the caste data in sharp focus with a recommendation of 27 per cent reservation for OBCs. Prime Minister Vishwanath Pratap Singh implemented the Mandal Commission recommendation in 1990 which has been impacting the social, economic, and political life of this country.

BJP’s Kamandal politics, that is Hindutva communal politics ran parallel to it. BJP was able to form government at the Centre in 1998, and1999-2004. They accommodated OBCs in large numbers in their Hindutva brand of politics.

During the UPA rule SECC 2011 collected caste data but the findings of the census was never released. Neither the BJP nor the Congress were able to emerge as major beneficiary of the OBC politics. Major beneficiaries remained the socialists of all colours.

PM Narendra Modi has been practicing Hindutva plus OBC politics since 2014. Nevertheless, 2024 Lok Sabha election result brought them down to 240 seats in the Lok Sabha, and PM Narendra Modi needed to take support from other political parties, chief among them are - JD(U) of Bihar and TDP of Andhra Pradesh, both of which have considerable base among OBCs and Dalits.

It should be noted that JD(U) led by Nitish Kumar conducted the first caste survey in the country in independent India, before the Lok Sabha election, when he was with Mahagathbandhan along with RJD and Congress. Nitish Kumar left INDIA bloc and switched to NDA just before the Lok Sabha election 2024. Congress demanded caste census at national level, and brought the OBC politics in the political centre-stage.

In recent times, after Bihar, Telangana and Karnataka have also conducted the caste surveys as part of OBC politics. Congress is currently ruling Telangana and Karnataka, and has promised and demanded caste census at the national level. Bihar is going to poll later in 2025, where caste is a significant factor to lose of win elections.

The Centre is yet to announce when the Caste census would be conducted, and prepare the modalities for the exercise. Nevertheless, whenever the caste census data will be released, it would give knowledge of the current functioning of the caste system, which would form the basis of future politics, sharing of economic and other resources, and social behaviour in general. It has a potential to solve the great problem of social, economic, and political inequality in our society, but also has a potential risk of caste-based conflicts and divisions, which may not be limited to Hindus. India needs to tread carefully. (IPA Service)