New Delhi: Congress on Wednesday supported the Narendra Modi-led government's decision on the caste census. "It is the right step which the party was demanding for a long time," the grand old Party said after the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs decided enumeration of caste should be included in the forthcoming census.
Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi told reporters here, "We have been advocating for a Caste Census for some time. The Modi government had previously opposed it, citing reasons we are unclear about. Now, they have suddenly decided to move forward."
Gandhi added, "We wholeheartedly welcome this decision but demand a clear implementation timeline. Having successfully pressured the government to conduct a caste census, we will continue to push for destroying the 50 per cent cap, and we demand the implementation of Article 15(5), which pertains to reservations in private educational institutions- a law that already exists. Congress urges the government to implement it promptly."
Hailing the Congress workers for supporting caste census, Gandhi added, "I think every Congress member, worker, and every single person who have fought for the caste census and there are millions of people, activists from the backward communities, Dalits, and Adivasis- I am very proud of what you have done.”
The Union Cabinet decided that the enumeration of caste will be included in the forthcoming census. "Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Cabinet Committee of Political Affairs has decided that caste enumeration should be included in the forthcoming census. This demonstrates that the government is committed to the values and interests of a society like in the past when the government introduced 10 per cent reservation in the economically weaker sections of society without stress in any section," Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said at a media briefing after the conclusion of the cabinet meeting.
