The population count for the decade may begin belatedly in 2025 and the data may be available to the government the year after. What may mark the latest exercise of knowing how many Indians there are in India is that it may lead to a delimitation exercise that could change the proportional representation in the Lok Sabha in terms of the number of MPs each state is eligible to send to Parliament.
What has not been said so far is whether or not this will also be a caste census. The need to gather data on the population to help formulate policies more accurately is not in question. The caste part of it is the hot potato in a country that has a substantial percentage reserved for affirmative action, the need for which is again not to be denied because India is one of the most unequal countries in the world.
Having lost early battles in Mandal versus Mandir politics, the ruling BJP is a reluctant player when it comes to counting the people by caste. And yet current coalition compulsions are so different that there may be compromises to be made by the rulers who are into a third term but only with the requisite alliance support.
The clamour for a caste census is not driven only by the Opposition, which sees a route back to power by playing the caste and reservation cards, but also by allies of the ruling party now. A fuller caste count can be justified on the grounds that the old censuses (from 1951) have been enumerating people by SC/ ST classification. Will the BJP compromise and go for a caste count at least on a voluntary basis, allowing people to register their caste classification only if they wish?
Caste makes for complex politics that independent India has borne as additional burden. In itself a divisive process, the caste census must, however, be undertaken to fulfil aspirations. Even if it is further complicated by the difficulty of defining caste in inter-caste and inter-religious marriages whose numbers are rising.
Whether the BJP will bite the bullet and allow a caste census remains to be seen. For a just and equitable society, the number of OBCs must also be counted for them to get a fuller share of quotas than they may be eligible for. Proportional representation within the affirmative action for a major segment of the population is not an unjust demand.
