Rahul Gandhi says it’s ‘anti-national’ not to support caste census

Congress leader interacts with UGC Chairman, coinciding with the 98th anniversary of the Mahad Satyagraha of B.R. Ambedkar and emphasised importance of social justice

Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Thursday (March 20, 2025) said it is “anti-national” not to support the demand for a caste census.

Mr. Gandhi said this is an interaction with former University Grants Commission (UGC) Chairman Sukhadeo Thorat. The video of the interaction, coinciding with the 98th anniversary of the Mahad Satyagraha of B.R. Ambedkar, was released on the Congress leader’s social media channels.

“There is certainly a capture of our systems — education, healthcare, political, bureaucratic system. For me, it’s important that the truth of what is going on in India with regards to who has what access, who controls which institutions, who’s where. To me, that is a fundamental nationalist exercise. I think not supporting the caste census is anti-national,” Mr. Gandhi said.

In a post on X, he said: “On 20 March 1927, Babasaheb Ambedkar directly challenged caste discrimination through the Mahad Satyagraha. This was not just a fight for the right to water, but also for equality and respect. Caste census is an important step towards bringing out the truth of this inequality, while its opponents do not want to let this truth come out.”

The Opposition leader told Prof. Thorat, who is a part of a technical committee to study the findings of the caste survey done by the Telangana government, that there was need to deepen the idea of the caste census and “make it more sophisticated”.

Separately, Mr. Gandhi also met with a delegation of the National Confederation of OBC Employees’ Welfare Association, representing 30,000 public sector employees, to discuss the problems faced by them. 

While the Congress had made social justice and caste census its main plank for the 2024 Lok Sabha election, the BJP had take a more nuanced position. Without expressly opposing the demand for a caste census, the ruling party had warned that such a move could create fissures in society.

Published - March 20, 2025 10:17 pm IST