M.K. Stalin demands resolution in T.N. Assembly for proper caste census
DMK president M.K. Stalin has urged the Tamil Nadu government to pass a resolution demanding that the Centre conduct a structured caste census. He argues that the current open-ended format proposed by the Centre is inefficient and will fail to accurately capture socio-economic data for OBC empowerment.
Why it matters
The demand highlights the ongoing political tension regarding caste-based data collection in India, which is central to debates over reservation policies and social justice frameworks.
DMK president and former Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Sunday urged the State government to adopt a resolution in the Tamil Nadu Assembly urging the Centre to conduct a proper caste census to ascertain the socio-economic status of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in the country, evolve an appropriate reservation policy, and ensure the empowerment of OBCs.
In a social media message, he said the objective of the caste census could be achieved only if the census was conducted based on a list of communities prepared by the Central and the State governments.
He said the “open-ended format to record caste details without a pre-determined drop-down list or standardised menu”, as announced by the Centre, was disappointing. The explanation that the communities listed in the OBC list were not castes but classes was also not acceptable, he said.
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