Centre's caste census move may alter UP's political dynamics
LUCKNOW: The Centre's decision to include caste enumeration in the upcoming census is set to create political ripples in Uttar Pradesh, the country's most politically significant state, by reshaping caste-based alignments that dominate its political landscape.
The move is likely to accelerate long-pending demands from BJP allies in the state for a sub-quota within the OBC and SC/ST categories.
Parties such as Om Prakash Rajbhar's Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP), Dr Sanjay Nishad's NISHAD Party and Anupriya Patel's Apna Dal (S) have consistently advocated the division of broader caste groups into sub-categories to ensure equitable distribution of reservation benefits.
The demand for 'quota within quota' stems from the findings of the Rohini Commission, constituted in 2017 to examine sub-categorisation of OBCs. Headed by Justice G Rohini, retired Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court, the four-member panel submitted its report in 2023, recommending a fairer allocation of reservation based on internal disparities among OBC communities.
This argument for equitable distribution was previously echoed in Uttar Pradesh when the state government set up a social justice committee under retired judge Justice Raghvendra Kumar.
The committee, in its 2018 report, recommended dividing OBCs into three groups: backward (12 sub-castes), more backward (59 sub-castes) and most backward (79 sub-castes). Similarly, the Dalits were also split into three groups: Dalit (4 sub-castes), Ati Dalit (31) and Maha Dalit (46).
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