"Congress's job is to raise questions, there is nothing new": Union Minister Sukanta Majumdar on caste census

Speaking to ANI, Majumdar said, "Congress's job is to raise questions, there is nothing new in this... The last census was done in 2011; now, the time has come for the census, and the caste census will be done."

He added that the government had already planned the programme and was moving ahead with it in a structured manner. "Our government plans the programme for the country... Congress and the rest of the opposition want to postpone it by any means," he said.

His remarks came after the decision to issue a gazette notification for the 16th Census, with caste enumeration.

On Monday, Sukanta Majumdar welcomed the decision to issue a gazette notification for the 16th Census with caste enumeration, and said that it will help the government in planning for the future.

Sukanta Majumdar said, "We welcome this decision. It was pending since long time. Census will start from March 1, 2027. It will help the government in planning for the future after getting the data of the census."

He alleged that CM Mamata Banerjee created an OBC-A category and gave reservations to Muslims.

The central government notified the population census on Monday, the process of which will begin in March 2027.

Meanwhile, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday reviewed the preparations for the upcoming Census during a meeting in New Delhi along with Union Home Secretary, Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India (RG& CCI) and other senior officials.

Sharing the details in a post on X, Amit Shah said, "Reviewed the preparations for the 16th Census with senior officials. Tomorrow, the gazette notification of the census will be issued. The census will include caste enumeration for the first time. As many as 34 lakh enumerators and supervisors and around 1.3 lakh census functionaries will conduct the operation with cutting-edge mobile digital gadgets." (ANI)