Our intentions, their empty slogans: Dharmendra Pradhan on caste census

Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday hailed the government's decision to conduct a nationwide caste census as a "game changer" and, targeting the opposition, said it had exposed the difference between "true intentions and empty sloganeering".

Addressing a press conference at the BJP headquarters, he said the arrogance and hypocrisy of those who said "the government is theirs but the system is ours" was clearly exposed.

"The game-changer decision has exposed the difference between our true intentions and empty sloganeering by the opposition," Pradhan said. "This decision of the caste census has not been taken suddenly. 'Sabka Saath-Sabka Vikas' (together with all, development for all) has been the theoretical and philosophical opinion of the Modi government," he said.


The comments came a day after the government announced that caste enumeration would be included in the forthcoming census exercise in a "transparent" manner, even as it slammed the opposition parties for using caste surveys as a "political tool".

Pradhan pushed back against the Congress for claiming credit for the caste census announcement. "When this decision was taken yesterday, some people got upset. They said, 'the government is theirs (ruling party's), but the system is ours (opposition's)," he said. "To bring social justice on track, the Mandal Commission was formed under the Janata Party government of 1977. The Jana Sangh, the predecessor of the BJP, was part of this government." The Union minister said the Mandal Commission report was "locked in a dungeon" for 10 years.