New Delhi- The Centre announced on Wednesday that the caste census will be conducted along with the next population census, an exercise undertaken at the central level. The decision was taken at the high-level meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs (CCPA) on Wednesday, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Addressing the media, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said, “Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs has decided today that caste enumeration would be included in the forthcoming census.” The move holds significance because the caste census has been one of the main poll planks of the Congress-led INDIA Bloc, and it has also been striking a deep chord with the common public. The ‘unexpected’ move by the Centre is set to recalibrate the social equations and also influence public sentiments to a great extent, say political watchers.

Notably, the government has so far refrained from undertaking any such exercise, citing its potential to spike division and differences in society. However, Congress and its allies, including the RJD, have strongly advocated for it, reasoning that all sections of society must get representation in government as per their population. By announcing the caste census, the BJP-led government has turned the tables on the Congress and blunted its most popular narrative in challenging the Centre.

The move also assumes significance as the decision comes just ahead of the Assembly elections slated in Bihar, later this year, where caste equations reign supreme over everything. From Congress to regional satraps like RJD and even the ruling JD-U, all parties rely on the caste matrix to claim power in the state. By clubbing the caste census with the national census, the BJP will have a vantage point in convincing the masses about its intentions and motive of ensuring social justice under the Modi government and also ‘expose’ Congress and others on using it merely for political gains.