Modi wants caste census to fail: Jairam Ramesh

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh has criticized the government's approach to the caste census, alleging that Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants the process to fail. Ramesh claims that using open-ended questions instead of a dropdown list in the census is a "very serious flaw." He asserts that the government's decision means people could record different names, sub-castes, and spellings for the same caste, undermining the census's purpose.

Ramesh and Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge have written a letter to Prime Minister Modi, demanding a more structured approach to the census. They have also called for extensive consultation with political parties, experts, and the public before drafting a new questionnaire. The letter, dated August 20, states that the current questionnaire should be scrapped and replaced with one based on a certified list of castes, similar to surveys conducted in Telangana and Bihar.

The Congress has held 17 press conferences across the country in the past four days, reiterating their demand for a properly conducted caste census. Despite these efforts, the Modi government has yet to respond to the Congress's concerns.