Congress President Shri Mallikarjun Kharge’s Opening Remarks at the CWC meeting on May 2, 2025 at the AICC Office, New Delhi

Namaskar friends, after the Pahalgam terrorist attack, an URGENT meeting of the CWC was held on April 24. In that meeting, we had said by passing a resolution that we will cooperate with the government in every possible way in the fight against terrorism and in teaching a lesson to the terrorists. But even after many days of this incident, no clear strategy has come out from the government.

Rahul Gandhi met the family of Shubham Dwivedi in Kanpur and demanded from the government to give martyr status and respect to the deceased. We will unite and deal strictly with any challenge that comes in the way of the unity, integrity and prosperity of the country. The entire opposition is with the government on this issue. We have given this message to the whole world.

Friends, in the meantime, the Modi government has decided to get the Caste Census done along with the Census. For this, first of all I congratulate Rahulji, who constantly raised this issue and forced the government to decide on caste census. You turned it into a powerful campaign in the ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra’. And social justice became the most important issue of the 18th Lok Sabha elections.

Rahul ji has again proved that if we raise the issues of the people with honesty, then the government has to bow down. After the withdrawal of the three black farmer laws from the Land Acquisition amendment Bill, caste census has also been added to this list, in which a stubborn government has had to bow down once again.

Congress state governments in Telangana and Karnataka have completed the process of CASTE SURVEY implementation and have started implementing it in government schemes. In Gujarat in AICC session, we also passed the Resolution on 9 April 2025, reiterating our demand. We also demanded removal of 50% ceiling. The work of removing the ceiling will be done through constitutional amendment.

The government accepted our years-old demand for caste census, but the time chosen surprised us as well as shocked us. Many doubts have arisen in our hearts about the language and sentiment with which many things were said.

When I wrote a letter to the Prime Minister on April 16, 2023, and demanded this, the government was totally against it. Then how did the change of heart happen suddenly? The government opposed our demand on every platform. It was called divisive and Urban Naxal. In the state elections, Modiji and RSS leaders criticized it. Slogans like ‘If we divide, we will be cut off’ were given.

We need to tell people that the entire process of Caste Census, which began in 2011 under UPA- 2, ended on March 31, 2016. The government itself admitted this in response to a Rajya Sabha question in 2022. Then it is foolish if we are expected to publish incomplete data in 2014.

We would like to say that we are happy that he understood our point, albeit late. There is an old saying, better late than never! In the 2024 elections, the Congress had said that by conducting a comprehensive social, economic and caste census, the population, socio-economic condition of all castes and communities, their share in the national wealth and their representation in institutions related to the government should be known. It is our view that this will help in giving us the X-Ray of the society. We remained firm on this demand. As the main opposition Party, we constantly raised this demand in the Save Constitution campaigns.

Rahul Ji continuously raised this demand in every speech he made inside and outside the Parliament. All our colleagues took this matter forward. That is why I congratulate all of you for this. But for us this is not an issue of victory or defeat or politics. Congress has always been fighting against the socio-economic backwardness and poverty of the country. This remains a part of our political agenda.

Two months before the caste census of 1931, Mahatma Gandhi wrote an editorial in the Young India and said, “Just as we undergo medical tests from time-to-time to check our health, census is the most important test of any nation.”

Gandhiji also said, “Census is useful only when the government uses the necessary information for the betterment.” So of course the government has accepted our demand of conducting caste census. But now we also have to ensure that this caste census is done in the right manner. Whatever results come out of this, they should also be implemented. More laws and policies should be made according to them.

The Modi government did not conduct the census of 2021. Even today all government work is being done on the data of the 2011 census. The Modi government kept postponing the work of caste census due to its anti-reservation thinking of RSS. But now when the public started joining the Congress Party and allied parties on this issue, it was not possible for Modi ji to postpone it any longer.

But many questions still remain, from the budget to the government’s policy and intentions. Therefore, we have to remain alert until this is brought to fruition. The government is trying to mislead people on this issue. Today, its top leaders in Bihar are trying to give the credit to the BJP and Prime Minister Modi by organizing Press Conferences in every district and are calling the Congress Party itself anti-caste census.

Therefore, we have to formulate our strategy. If necessary, we should take our allies along and do public meeting at the National level or the state level, whichever is appropriate, or we should consider doing a nationwide press conference.

On this very topic, the AICC Communication Department had a 90-minute detailed press conference on May 1. If you want, you can also hold press conferences in the states on the basis of this information.

Now many issues will be raised politically, for which we have to be prepared. We have to ensure that caste census and after that all our demands are fulfilled properly. I conclude my speech. Thank you all.