caste census
– Photo: Amar Ujala
Expansion
Will the caste-based census process in Bihar go ahead or be halted? What will happen to the dream project of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and the Grand Alliance government? What will happen to RJD President Lalu Prasad’s claim that “caste census will happen”? Almost all the political parties of Bihar’s ruling-opposition had agreed to the caste census, but a group of common people challenged it in the court and an interim stay was put on it. So what will happen next? This question is being raised today because tomorrow is the date of its hearing in the country’s Supreme Court on Friday and till now the Patna High Court has not given a final decision on it.
No relief from Supreme Court on interim decision
According to the state government, this is a caste-based survey, in which giving information is not mandatory. On the other hand, after hearing the petitions filed against it, the Patna High Court wrote in an interim order on 04 May 2023 that prima facie it appears to be a census on the basis of caste, which the state has no right. The division bench of Chief Justice Vinod Chandran and Justice Madhuresh Prasad had set the date of July 3, 2023 for hearing on the petitions filed in the case while imposing an interim stay. The Supreme Court had also refused to stay the interim order passed by the Patna High Court. Along with this, the case was sent before the Patna High Court for hearing. The Supreme Court also called it a prima facie population census, but it was ordered that first the High Court should hold a hearing for the final decision, then the hearing would be held on July 14.
Hearing in the Supreme Court only after the decision of the High Court
July 14 is just tomorrow, but the High Court has not given the final verdict. In such a situation, preferred legal experts believe that the date will be extended from the Supreme Court, because the Patna High Court has completed the hearing before July 13 as per the order of the Supreme Court. The decision is safe, so now the hearing will be held in the Supreme Court only after the decision comes here. Even on July 13, it was not in the list of Patna High Court, which means that the date will be received from the Supreme Court.
Interesting to know what happened in Patna High Court
In the Patna High Court, further hearing started from the interim decision on July 03 before the division bench of Chief Justice Vinod Chandran and Justice Partha Sarathi. Supreme Court advocate Aparajita Singh, appearing for the petitioner on the first day, said that this is a violation of the Aadhaar Act, confidentiality and privacy. It was further told that this is a census in the guise of a survey. No definition of caste. Even in the 1931 census it was said that caste is not a legal term. There is also an option not to mention the caste. He argued that it was violative of Articles 14, 19 and 21 of the Constitution of India. The next day, during the hearing, the petitioner’s advocate Abhinav Srivastava told the court that the state government was conducting caste and economic surveys. He told that this right to conduct survey is outside the jurisdiction of the state government. It is unconstitutional as well as a violation of the right to equality.
Government’s argument was also interesting in the High Court
After hearing the side of the petitioner for two days, when the High Court gave time to the government to present its stand, the state government’s advocate general PK Shahi argued. The Advocate General said that 80 percent of the survey work has been completed. The state government is competent to get such surveys done. The government wants to find out the social and economic status of the people and that is the purpose so that it can be used in future. The survey conducted by the state government is not like a census. Survey is a voluntary work. It is not a matter of making any kind of pressure and threatening to get it done. A caste-based survey was conducted by the Center in the year 2011, but it was not released. He said that people of all classes claim caste statistics in relation to their respective castes, so this survey will reveal the correct situation so that plans can be made for their benefit. He also said that the data that the state government wants to collect is in the public domain in some form or the other and it is not going to interfere with anyone’s rights and law.