Madras High Court Directs Centre to Hold Caste-based Census

Amid ongoing debate on the issue, the Madras High Court has instructed the central government to conduct caste-based census in the country, said media reports.

Admitting a PIL moved by advocate R Krishnamoorthy, a Division Bench yesterday issued directives to the Census Commissioner to take all steps to hold caste-wise enumeration, reports said.

The bench comprising of Acting Chief Justice Elipe Dharma Rao and Justice TS Sivagnanam said that the court already answered in affirmative the relief sought by the petitioner in an earlier verdict on a writ petition, said reports.

In its judgement delivered in October 2009, the court had noted that there had never been any caste-wise enumeration or tabulation since 1931, reports said.

“When there cannot be any dispute that there is an increase in the population of Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe and Other Backward Classes manifold after 1931, the percentage of reservation fixed on the basis of population in 1931 has to be proportionately increased by conducting caste-wise census,” it had then held.