Law and Society-wl-2104-The Possibilities of the Caste Census

Discussion around the first nation-wide caste census in 2026 has focussed largely on its potential impact on reservation of government jobs and education. However, a caste census could have other ramifications from a constitutional perspective that have not yet been fully explored or understood—ranging from a change in the very conception of what is the meaning of the phrase “socially and educationally backward” to political representation among Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes