Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday welcomed Modi government's announcement of caste census but pressed for clarity on its implementation.
TheCabinet Committee on Political Affairs (CCPA) on Wednesday approved holding of a caste census in the country, first time since 2011, when the Socio-Economic and Caste Census was piloted by Ministry of Rural Development.
The Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha also reiterated his demand to remove the 50 per cent cap on reservations, saying the move will only be meaningful if followed by concrete action.
“We support this completely but we want a timeline; by when will it be done. Budget allocation should be made for it and date be announced," Gandhi said while addressing a media conference.
“We want that 50 per cent cap on reservation to go,” he said.
Gandhi added that while the government had opposed the caste census until now, the sudden decision to initiate it was a welcome change.
"We had said in the Parliament that we will make Caste Census happen. We had also said that we would scrap the 50% cap, the artificial wall that is in place. Narendra Modi used to say that there are just 4 cases. Don't know what happened but suddenly after 11 years, Caste Census has been announced. We completely support it but we want a timeline. We want to know that by when this will happen. This is the first step. Telangana has become a model in Caste Census and it can become a blueprint. We offer our support to the Govt in designing the Caste Census," said Gandhi.
Gandhi also said that there is a stark difference between the models of Bihar and Telangana, highlighting that the latter is a better one. “This is the first step. Telangana is a model for caste census,” he said, referring to the socio-economic caste survey undertaken by the Congress-led government in the state.
Gandhi maintained that the government’s reversal on caste census indicates growing pressure from the Opposition’s demand for social justice-based data.
TheCabinet Committee on Political Affairs (CCPA) on Wednesday approved holding of a caste census in the country, first time since 2011, when the Socio-Economic and Caste Census was piloted by Ministry of Rural Development.
The Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha also reiterated his demand to remove the 50 per cent cap on reservations, saying the move will only be meaningful if followed by concrete action.
“We support this completely but we want a timeline; by when will it be done. Budget allocation should be made for it and date be announced," Gandhi said while addressing a media conference.
“We want that 50 per cent cap on reservation to go,” he said.
Gandhi added that while the government had opposed the caste census until now, the sudden decision to initiate it was a welcome change.
"We had said in the Parliament that we will make Caste Census happen. We had also said that we would scrap the 50% cap, the artificial wall that is in place. Narendra Modi used to say that there are just 4 cases. Don't know what happened but suddenly after 11 years, Caste Census has been announced. We completely support it but we want a timeline. We want to know that by when this will happen. This is the first step. Telangana has become a model in Caste Census and it can become a blueprint. We offer our support to the Govt in designing the Caste Census," said Gandhi.
Gandhi also said that there is a stark difference between the models of Bihar and Telangana, highlighting that the latter is a better one. “This is the first step. Telangana is a model for caste census,” he said, referring to the socio-economic caste survey undertaken by the Congress-led government in the state.
Gandhi maintained that the government’s reversal on caste census indicates growing pressure from the Opposition’s demand for social justice-based data.
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