Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has demanded a caste census to “honour sentiments of the people”.

In an interview to The Indian Express published on Thursday, the Telugu Desam Party leader said: “Caste census, yes, it has to be done. There is a sentiment, and there’s nothing wrong with it. You do a caste census, you do an economic analysis, and you go for a skill census. You work out how to build all these things and reduce economic disparities.”

A nationwide caste census has been a key demand of the Opposition.

Naidu’s party is an ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party and a member of the National Democratic Alliance government at the Centre.

The chief minister, however, clarified that poverty was the “biggest issue” in his view.

“Yes, you have to honour it [the public demand for a caste census],” Naidu said. “There are no second thoughts. At the same time, poverty is the biggest issue. Even if you belong to a weaker section, if you have money, society will respect you. If you are from an upper caste and don’t have money, nobody will respect you. Wealth is a big leveller. That’s where you have to find balance.”

In an interview to The Economic Times published on Wednesday, Naidu suggested conducting a census in real time using Aadhaar data. He proposed to include information about a family’s caste, socio-economic background and their level of skill under the Aadhaar framework to “bring special focus on more backward castes”.

In August 2023, Naidu supported the caste census noting that it was necessary to have data on the economic status of all communities to take steps to eradicate poverty.

The Congress promised a nationwide caste census in its manifesto for the 2024 Lok Sabha election.

The proponents of the caste census argue that it will help ascertain the true population of India’s marginalised classes and castes. This would pave the way for policies such as increased quotas in government jobs and education.

In an affidavit filed in the Supreme Court in 2021, the BJP-led Union government had said that the “exclusion of information regarding any other caste”, apart from Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, from the decadal census was a conscious policy decision.

It said that collecting data on the population of Other Backward Classes would be administratively difficult and lack accuracy.

However, the BJP has softened its stance towards the exercise since then.

In November, Home Minister Amit Shah said that the BJP did not oppose the caste census, but said that any decision about it would be taken after wide consultations.

BJP chief JP Nadda had said on April 12 that his party was not against the caste census but alleged that the Congress intended to use the exercise to divide society.

BJP’s allies, namely the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), Janata Dal (United) and the Republican Party of India (A), have also advocated for the caste census.

In September, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the parent organisation of the BJP, also signalled its support for the exercise.

India had last conducted an exercise to count the population of all its caste groups in 1931. In independent India, census reports have published data on the population of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes but not other caste groups.

The Bihar government had conducted a caste survey in two phases last year. It found that the Other Backward Classes and the Extremely Backward Classes constitute over 63% of the state’s population.

Also read: Mapping land ownership as part of the caste census could uncover key patterns about power, resources