The decision of the Patna high court (HC) to immediately suspend a controversial caste-based survey in Bihar could not have come at a more politically inopportune moment for the ruling coalition, comprising the Rashtriya Janata Dal, the Janata Dal (United) and the Congress. A plan to use the headcount of castes — which has never […]
Tag Archives: caste census
18
Apr
Apr
Campaigning in Karnataka, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi called for a caste census and proportionate reservation — their population is expected to be upwards of 40% — for Other Backward Classes (OBCs). While such demands have been made by leaders of Dravidian and Mandal-based north Indian parties, it is for the first time that a Congress […]
16
Apr
Apr
Bihar’s survey of all castes and their socioeconomic condition began this weekend. The contentious exercise — attempting to enumerate the numerical strength and socioeconomic conditions of all castes for the first time since Independence — is happening against the backdrop of a political churn. Bihar’s ruling coalition comprises (along with the junior most partner, the […]