Supreme Court dismisses plea against caste enumeration in census

The Supreme Court dismissed a petition challenging the Union Government’s decision to conduct caste enumeration as part of the upcoming Census exercise.

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice Vipul Pancholi observed that the government needs data on backward classes to frame welfare policies and schemes.

The PIL was filed by Sudhakar Gummula, who appeared before the court in person. He argued that collecting caste data could be misused by politicians and corporate entities and claimed that the government already possesses sufficient data.

Rejecting the arguments, the bench said the issue falls entirely within the policy domain of the government and does not warrant judicial interference.

“What is wrong with it? Any day’s government must know how many people are backward class and what kind of welfare measures are to be taken for them,” the Chief Justice remarked during the hearing.

The court ultimately dismissed the plea, reiterating that caste enumeration in the Census is a policy decision of the Centre.