New Delhi, (IANS) Congress on Monday raised serious concerns over the central government’s approach to caste enumeration in Census 2027. It alleged a lack of clarity and intent.

The party also demanded immediate consultations with political parties, state governments, and civil society organisations before finalising the exercise.

Congress General Secretary (Communications) and Rajya Sabha MP Jairam Ramesh said that Phase-1 of the much-delayed Census 2027 — the Houselisting and Housing Census — is scheduled to be conducted between April and September 2026, while Phase-2, the Population Enumeration, will take place in September 2026 in Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Ladakh, and the snowbound areas of Jammu and Kashmir. In the rest of the country, population enumeration is slated for February 2027.

Highlighting what he termed a “complete U-turn” by the Centre, Ramesh said the Modi government had suddenly announced on April 30, 2025, that caste enumeration would be included in Census 2027, despite consistently opposing the idea in the past.

“The Modi government had all along rejected the idea of a caste census,” Ramesh said, recalling that the Centre had reiterated its opposition in a reply in the Lok Sabha on July 20, 2021, as well as in an affidavit filed before the Supreme Court on September 21, 2021.

He further pointed out that as recently as April 28, 2024, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a television interview, had accused those demanding a caste census of having an “urban naxal mindset”.

“But clearly the Prime Minister was forced to capitulate and agree to the widespread demand for a caste census that had been articulated by the Indian National Congress led by Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi,” Ramesh said.

The Congress leader also flagged concerns over the recently notified list of subjects to be covered in the Houselisting and Housing Census Schedule. He noted that Question 12 merely asks whether the head of the household belongs to the Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe, or ‘Other’ categories, instead of explicitly including OBC and General categories.

“Since caste enumeration is to be part of Census 2027, the formulation of Question 12 raises serious questions about the Modi government’s true intentions and its commitment to a comprehensive, fair, nationwide caste census,” he said.

Ramesh said the Congress now calls upon the government to immediately initiate a dialogue with all stakeholders before finalising the details of caste enumeration.

“Such consultations were an integral part of the SEEEPC Survey conducted by the Telangana government in 2025,” he said, adding that the exercise remains “the most comprehensive and meaningful way to gather vital caste-wise data on education, employment, income, and political engagement.”

He emphasised that such data is essential for ensuring “greater economic and social justice” across the country.

–IANS

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