Assam CM Challenges Rahul Gandhi on Caste Census

Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma criticized Rahul Gandhi on the issue of caste identity, stating that Gandhi would need to disclose his caste if a caste census is conducted. In response, Gandhi criticized BJP MP Anurag Thakur, while the Congress party promised to address caste-based reservations and conduct a nationwide census.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma criticized Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, asserting that Gandhi would have to disclose his caste identity if a caste census is undertaken. 'Earlier Rahul Gandhi used to ask journalists about their caste. Now, when people ask him about his caste, he has a problem with it. Will the caste census be conducted without asking about caste?... He says I will get the caste census done but will not reveal my caste, how will this happen?... Rahul Gandhi will have to reveal his caste if the census is conducted,' Sarma stated on Thursday.

On Tuesday, during a Lok Sabha discussion on the Union Budget, Gandhi accused BJP MP Anurag Thakur of 'abusing and insulting' him. Thakur had engaged in a heated exchange with Gandhi, criticizing those who advocate for a caste census while not disclosing their own caste. 'Those whose caste is not known, talk about the caste-census. I want to remind the Speaker that in this House itself, a former prime minister RG-1 (Rajiv Gandhi) had opposed reservation for OBCs,' Thakur remarked.

In response, Gandhi said, 'Whoever raises the issues of Adivasi, Dalit, and the backward, is abused. I will accept these abuses willingly...Anurag Thakur has abused me and insulted me, but I do not want any apology.' Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav intervened, questioning Thakur on how one could inquire about a person's caste.

'How can you ask about caste?' Yadav asked Thakur in the Lower House. The Congress party has promised to pass a constitutional amendment to raise the Supreme Court-mandated 50 percent cap on reservations for Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and Other Backward Classes (OBC), as detailed in its poll manifesto.

The party also promised to conduct a nationwide Socio-Economic and Caste Census to enumerate the castes and sub-castes and their socio-economic conditions.