Welcoming the announcement of the Union Government that caste enumeration would be included in the forthcoming census exercise in a transparent manner, Asiriyar Dr.K. Veeramani, the President of the Dravidar Kazhagam (DK) released a statement urging on the implementation at the earliest. His statement was as follows in brief:
On 30th April, 2025, Aswini Vaishnaw, the Union Minister for Railways and Information and Broadcasting met media personnel and informed that in the meet of the Union Cabinet ministers held on that day, headed by the Prime Minister Modi, it was announced as a policy decision that caste count would be held along with the upcoming census and that a Resolution was also passed to implement it.
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Commendable decision
We welcome the decision though it is a belated one. For quite a number of years the opposition parties in the I.N.D.I.A. Bloc had been insisting on caste data enumeration as a need for census. It had been stressed that it would enable people acquire social justice. The Dravidar Kazhagam (DK), the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and other organisations of Dravidian Movement had also been consistently emphasising on its dire need but the BJP and the R.S.S. had been refusing to comply with it, stating – “It would only aggravate casteism. Hence this request cannot be complied with.”
The cabinet meet headed by Modi has suddenly taken a U-Turn contrary to its stand and come forward to include caste enumeration in the forthcoming census exercise itself. We heartily welcome this decision, though belated. It is said – “Better late than never”. Hence, the delay could be condoned.
For some, social justice is merely a political game, but for us in the Dravidian Movement, social justice is the air that we breathe. It is a noble principle that keeps us alive. The achievements in various fields have proved the veracity of our Dravidian ideology. We have all been justly rewarded by the decision of the Union Government. We heartily welcome it, despite its being a belated decision.
I.N.D.I.A. Bloc – the Achiever
Every political party would hail this move of the Modi Government as a victory achieved by it but infact the achievers are the allies of the I.N.D.I.A. Bloc comprising the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK); the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu; the Congress party headed by Rahul Gandhi; its beacon Ms.Sonia Gandhi and its leader Mallikarjun Kharge, who have all been striving for two years in the past, insisting on caste enumeration and voicing their demand all over the country and in the Parliament too.
This request has now been complied with by the BJP Government. We do not intend to debate over various political parties who take credit for this victory as an outcome of their demand. It is an urgent and essential need that this announcement is translated into action. We urge upon the Union Government to fix a timeline for the implementation and keep us all informed of the steps taken as well as the budget earmarked for this purpose.
The U-Turn of the BJP
We have to highlight the views of several political activists who observe meticulously the sudden U-Turn of the BJP. The BJP has made this announcement in direct contrast to its earlier stand. Though the decision has been taken through the Cabinet of Ministers, it is felt that the BJP has forethought of the Bihar State Assembly elections to be held within the next few months. The U-Turn of the BJP is probably a political strategy.
The BJP seems to be trying to revitalise itself by this announcement to conserve social justice. The need is perhaps felt to stabilise its vote-bank and earn back the lost trust of the people. It is an obvious truth that the BJP has been inevitably pushed to arrive at this decision, in order to revive itself. The BJP and the Prime Minister Modi should have decided to change its earlier stand after studying the current political situations in various states. The U-Turn for political reasons must be a ploy of the BJP for its own revival and survival.
Constitutional Duty
In the Seventh Schedule of the Indian Constitution, Article 246 has adumbrated the exclusive powers of the Union Government. The 69th adumbration in the VII Schedule – Union List, states that census should be conducted by it, once in ten years. The census that should have been held in 2021 itself has been kept in abeyance by the Union Government headed by the BJP. It was being put off under the pretext of the pandemic COVID-19. Hence, all the parties that welcome the sudden decision of the Modi Government, now insist on the implementation without any more delay. They expect all relevant particulars to be let out in a transparent manner.
Malicious distortion
When Babasaheb Ambedkar was the Minister for Laws, the first amendment was incorporated in the Constitution and the Backward class people were termed as “Socially and Educationally Backward Classes.” The Upper caste brahmin newspapers intentionally and schemingly began referring to them as “Socially and Economically Backward Class” using the acronym SEBC. This was a mischievous and malicious distortion. The word “Educationally” was deliberately avoided by those upper caste fanatics.
The announcement made now to conduct nation-wide caste census is a great victory achieved by the Periyar land and the people living on it. The credit should go to the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu M.K. Stalin who passed a special Resolution in the State Legislative Assembly, insisting strongly on caste enumeration. As a prime stalwart in I.N.D.I.A. Bloc, his efforts toward this accomplishment were commendable. It is noteworthy that he personally met the Prime Minister Modi at the capital city, New Delhi and submitted an appeal demanding caste enumeration. He returned after firmly stressing its dire need. By this caste census, the oppressed people would certainly be benefitted to a great extent.
Justified demand:
The demand of Tamil Nadu, the initiative and vigorous steps of the Hon’ble Chief Minister are all justified in all respects. One particular vital aspect should not escape the attention of the people. Some toxic forces went on questioning why the DMK Government never came forward on its own to conduct caste enumeration in the State. This was widely criticised as if it was a heinous crime of the DMK. The Cabinet Minister Ashvini Vaishnaw has silenced all those critics, after informing the decision of the Ministry, by saying –
“State Governments need not conduct caste enumeration separately on their own. Such enumerations would be considered just as surveys. Only the enumeration through the census conducted by the Union Government would be authoritative and truly authenticated. Some states have done caste enumeration non-transparently, which has only created doubts in the society.” We wish to highlight the words of the Cabinet Minister concerned, as stated above.
The forethought, caution and the wisdom of the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu must be realised and understood by everyone atleast now. He was quite right in his wise decision.
For some, social justice is merely a political game, but for us in the Dravidian Movement, social justice is the air that we breathe. It is a noble principle that keeps us alive. The achievements in various fields have proved the veracity of our Dravidian ideology. We have all been justly rewarded by the decision of the Union Government. We heartily welcome it, despite its being a belated decision. Let us all now urge upon it by our collective efforts to see that the Union Government expedites at the earliest and accomplishes the vital task.
