Patna High Court stays Bihar's caste-based census

Patna: High Court on Thursday, in an interim order, stayed the Bihar government's decision to conduct a caste-based census.

The bench of Chief Justice K Vinod Chandran and Justice Madhuresh Prasad gave its verdict after hearing the three pleas filed before it including the one filed by an NGO Youth for Equality. The matter would be heard next on July 3.

The decision came six days after the Supreme Court asked the High Court to consider, decide and dispose of the interim application of Youth for Equality preferably within three days.

The Bihar Government launched the caste survey on January 7. The plan was to compile data on each family digitally through a mobile application in the survey from the panchayat to the district level.

The petitioner sought to quash the government’s notification citing that the subject of the census falls in List 1 of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution of India and only the Union Government is contemplated to conduct the census.

Can't understamd why people have a problem: Nitish
Earlier in the day, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar expressed annoyance over opposition to the castes census in the state.

Kumar, the state's longest-serving CM, was replying to questions from journalists on a petition in the Patna High Court challenging the survey. "I cannot understand, why people have a problem with the survey. The last time a headcount was done was way back in 1931. We certainly have a fresh estimate. After all, the census takes into account respective populations of minorities, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes every ten years," he added.

"Unfortunately, and for reasons hard to fathom, even the census seems to be hanging fire," pointed out the JD(U) leader, referring to the census that was due in 2021, but got delayed on account of the pandemic.