New Delhi, June 17 (IANS) Amid sharp criticism by the Congress over the Centre’s gazette notification on the 16th National Census, BJP National Spokesperson Syed Shahnawaz Hussain slammed the opposition for “unnecessarily politicising” the issue and asked them to “read it properly before reacting.”

“The opposition has nothing constructive to do. Making unnecessary statements has become a habit for them. When the census will be conducted, the caste census will also be included. The PIB release and the Home Ministry have clarified this, yet they keep creating issues unnecessarily. They should read the notification properly before reacting,” Hussain told IANS.

The notification issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs outlines the schedule for India’s 16th National Census, set to be conducted in 2027, 16 years after the last census was held in 2011.

The reference date will be October 1, 2026, for snow-bound areas like Ladakh, and March 1, 2027, for the rest of the country.

Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav had earlier raised doubts about the intent behind the notification, questioning the Centre’s sincerity on the caste census.

Responding to this, Hussain remarked sharply: “On one hand, he demands a caste census, and when the government initiates it, he says he doesn’t trust it. If he doesn’t trust the Indian government, then whom does he trust? What kind of statements is Akhilesh Yadav making?”

Earlier on Monday, Jairam Ramesh said, “It is quite a damp squib and merely repeats what had already been announced on April 30, 2025.”

He said that it was only due to the “persistence and insistence” of the Congress that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was forced to agree to a caste census, but added that the latest notification was silent on the issue.

–IANS

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