The Dangerous Caste Politics

Rahul Gandhi becoming a full-time politician, can pose a challenge to Narendra Modi's leadership. His choice of caste politics to combat the communal politics of Modi and the ‘Sangh Parivar’ (RSS family)  is, to Julio Ribeiro (former Mumbai Police Commissioner), “a dangerous one. To add casteism to the two main evils that the country faces — communalism and corruption — will prevent our country from progressing, and is certainly a dangerous move.

“As endemic corruption weakens the moral fibre, communalism and casteism militate against unity that is essential to make India stand up as one against poverty, illiteracy and the feudal mentality that presently pervades the national psyche.

“Religious and caste identities are not going to disappear in the foreseeable future. It is a fact of life in India, been there for centuries. In rural India, where more than half of our people live, caste is a factor of daily existence….”

To complicate matters further, the Supreme Court, in a six-to-one decision of a seven-judge Constitution Bench, overturned its own 2004 ruling that had pronounced that all SCs constitute one homogenous body.  The 2024 Supreme Court majority verdict, argued that the categories of SCs who had not benefited from reservation should now be treated separately so that the principle on which reservation was conceived was upheld. This judgment  according to Ribeiro “will further divide Indian citizens and produce demands for inclusion from sub-castes whose existence itself was not known to most citizens.”

The court has however, rightly said that the underprivileged within the cases “too, should be given a part of the reservation pie. The enforcement of the court's order is not going to be easy. More difficult will be to calculate the political fallout of this further divide in the polity.”

Caste census not the way to go  for affirmative action

The issue of caste census emerged prominently during the last Parliamentary elections. The principal Opposition party, Congress and other Opposition parties, were very vocally in favour of it.

While the Census of India has been publishing data on Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, there has been no survey conducted to put a number to the population of backward classes and groups.

Since then, political parties favouring the caste census have been pushing for their demands to be fulfilled. Recently, the Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi stated that the Congress party will ensure that the caste census is conducted.

it is clear, writes Ashwani Mahajan (professor at PGDAV College, University of Delhi) “that we need to support SCs, STs and economically weaker sections through affirmative action for some more time. But the caste census is not the way to go.”

The Muslim factor: The intention of the Opposition is to “extend these benefits to minorities—Muslims in particular. Their demand for a caste census seems to be guided by narrow electoral interests.

“Many state governments, generally ruled by non-NDA parties have already tried to introduce religion-based reservation, for ‘all’ Muslims in government jobs and educational institutions. But they have failed to get the judicial nod for the same, as this quota contradicts Constitutional provisions. However, some states have given quota to a section of Muslims, by including poor Muslims in the OBC category, and Kerala where all Muslims have been categorised as OBC irrespective of their economic or social status. With the caste survey, they can legitimise their unsuccessful attempt to introduce reservation for minorities in general, particularly Muslims, in all states and at the centre.”

Another danger - redistribution of wealth: This is not without a reason, argues Mahajan.  Rahul Gandhi had reportedly said  in a rally in Hyderabad: ‘We will first conduct a nationwide caste census to determine how many people belong to the Other Backward Classes (OBCs), Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and minorities. After that, we will conduct a financial and institutional survey in a historic step to ascertain the distribution of wealth. We will give you whatever is your right’

So, the  demand for a caste census, if accepted, poses dangers. It is another dangerous design for “the redistribution of wealth, based on their share in the population….This can cause great damage to the economy, as it would disincentivise people to start their enterprises, create wealth and increase GDP. It may also create disharmony among different groups. This would be a retrograde step for India….”

Rahul Gandhi becoming a full-time politician, can pose a challenge to Narendra Modi's leadership. His choice of caste politics to combat the communal politics of Modi and the ‘Sangh Parivar’ (RSS family)  is, to Julio Ribeiro (former Mumbai Police Commissioner), “a dangerous one. To add casteism to the two main evils that the country faces — communalism and corruption — will prevent our country from progressing, and is certainly a dangerous move.

“As endemic corruption weakens the moral fibre, communalism and casteism militate against unity that is essential to make India stand up as one against poverty, illiteracy and the feudal mentality that presently pervades the national psyche.

“Religious and caste identities are not going to disappear in the foreseeable future. It is a fact of life in India, been there for centuries. In rural India, where more than half of our people live, caste is a factor of daily existence….”

To complicate matters further, the Supreme Court, in a six-to-one decision of a seven-judge Constitution Bench, overturned its own 2004 ruling that had pronounced that all SCs constitute one homogenous body.  The 2024 Supreme Court majority verdict, argued that the categories of SCs who had not benefited from reservation should now be treated separately so that the principle on which reservation was conceived was upheld. This judgment  according to Ribeiro “will further divide Indian citizens and produce demands for inclusion from sub-castes whose existence itself was not known to most citizens.”

The court has however, rightly said that the underprivileged within the cases “too, should be given a part of the reservation pie. The enforcement of the court's order is not going to be easy. More difficult will be to calculate the political fallout of this further divide in the polity.”

Caste census not the way to go  for affirmative action

The issue of caste census emerged prominently during the last Parliamentary elections. The principal Opposition party, Congress and other Opposition parties, were very vocally in favour of it.

While the Census of India has been publishing data on Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, there has been no survey conducted to put a number to the population of backward classes and groups.

Since then, political parties favouring the caste census have been pushing for their demands to be fulfilled. Recently, the Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi stated that the Congress party will ensure that the caste census is conducted.

it is clear, writes Ashwani Mahajan (professor at PGDAV College, University of Delhi) “that we need to support SCs, STs and economically weaker sections through affirmative action for some more time. But the caste census is not the way to go.”

The Muslim factor: The intention of the Opposition is to “extend these benefits to minorities—Muslims in particular. Their demand for a caste census seems to be guided by narrow electoral interests.

“Many state governments, generally ruled by non-NDA parties have already tried to introduce religion-based reservation, for ‘all’ Muslims in government jobs and educational institutions. But they have failed to get the judicial nod for the same, as this quota contradicts Constitutional provisions. However, some states have given quota to a section of Muslims, by including poor Muslims in the OBC category, and Kerala where all Muslims have been categorised as OBC irrespective of their economic or social status. With the caste survey, they can legitimise their unsuccessful attempt to introduce reservation for minorities in general, particularly Muslims, in all states and at the centre.”

Another danger - redistribution of wealth: This is not without a reason, argues Mahajan.  Rahul Gandhi had reportedly said  in a rally in Hyderabad: ‘We will first conduct a nationwide caste census to determine how many people belong to the Other Backward Classes (OBCs), Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and minorities. After that, we will conduct a financial and institutional survey in a historic step to ascertain the distribution of wealth. We will give you whatever is your right’

So, the  demand for a caste census, if accepted, poses dangers. It is another dangerous design for “the redistribution of wealth, based on their share in the population….This can cause great damage to the economy, as it would disincentivise people to start their enterprises, create wealth and increase GDP. It may also create disharmony among different groups. This would be a retrograde step for India….”

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