Caste Census India 2027: Congress General Secretary and Rajya Sabha MP Jairam Ramesh launched a sharp attack on the Narendra Modi-led government on Sunday, accusing the Centre of attempting to consign the caste census to the “cold storage.”
Sharing a comprehensive timeline of the government’s statements over the last few years on social media platform X, the senior leader alleged that the administration is actively misleading the nation to avoid a headcount of various caste groups.
Ramesh highlighted that on July 20, 2021, the government informed the Lok Sabha that it had taken a policy decision not to enumerate castes other than Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST). He noted that this was reinforced on September 21, 2021, when the Centre filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court confirming this “well-considered” policy.
The Congress leader further pointed out that during a television interview on April 28, 2024, Prime Minister Modi had labeled the Congress party’s demand for a caste census as reflecting an “Urban Naxal mentality.”
The narrative shifted on April 30, 2025. Ramesh observed that shortly after the nation was shaken by the Pahalgam terror attack, the government suddenly announced that a caste census would indeed be conducted as part of the upcoming national enumeration.
According to Ramesh, the Registrar General and Census Commissioner stated in a press conference on March 30, 2026, that results for the 2027 digital census would be available within that same year.
However, the Congress leader flagged a recent move by the government to amend Article 334-A. He claimed the government now argues that caste census results will not be available for several years, a claim he finds suspicious.
“The Prime Minister is misleading the country as usual and is engaged in creating massive confusion,” Ramesh stated. He noted that states like Bihar and Telangana completed comprehensive caste surveys in less than six months, making the Centre’s projected delays hard to justify.
Ramesh concluded that the hidden agenda is to bypass the caste census entirely by amending provisions that were unanimously passed by Parliament in September 2023.
Earlier, the senior editor-turned-politician also reacted to the ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam.’ Referencing a letter by Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, he termed the calling of a special session of Parliament amidst elections a “clear violation” of the Model Code of Conduct.
