An apparent divide that the government tried to deny once again plagued the union cabinet on Wednesday on the tricky and
politically sensitive issue of collecting caste details in Census 2011, compelling Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to refer it to a Group of Ministers (GoM) for a threadbare examination from legal, practicability and post-Census data use angles.

With no lesser person than Congress president Sonia Gandhi throwing her lot in support of the caste-based census, those opposed to the idea did not press outright for rejection of the proposal as done in an earlier cabinet meeting but they scuttled a decision by suggesting that all implications should be vetted.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Law Minister M Veerappa Moily stressed over no harm in getting the castes counted, the exercise last done in 1931, but the prime minister went by the suggestion of Home Minister P Chidambaram to get the proposal examined by the GoM.

BJP CAUTIOUS

The Bharatiya Janata Party, which too was divided when the Lok Sabha debated the issue early this month, on Wednesday chose to play safe, reserving its reaction until the government comes out with its formulation.

BJP spokesman Rajiv Pratap Rudy said the government appears to be putting the issue into the cold storage as has been the past experience of matters referred to the GoMs. it would be better if the government placed its stance before the parties, he said. RSS has opposed the caste-based census and the party will have to take this factor also into account, he added.

Only two days ago, at his press conference here on Monday, the prime minister had clarified that he did not declare any decision to go for the caste census but all that he said in parliament was that the cabinet will take into account the views expressed by the MPs, adding that the process is on.

Sources say Sonia Gandhi and Pranab Mukherjee had prevailed on Manmohan Singh in the Lok Sabha not to shoot down the
caste census demand as already done by Chidambaram in his reply to the debate, but to give an assurance to consider it.

After the Yadav trio of Mulayam Singh Yadav (Samajwadi Party), Lalu Prasad (Rashtriya Janata Dal) and Sharad Yadav (Janata Dal-United) lobbied during one of the adjournments of the Lok Sabha, Sonia Gandhi felt the caste count may be useful in helping the really backward communities. Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati and Lok Janshakti Party chief Ramvilas Paswan are other votaries for the caste census.

Sources said Chidambaram cited the logistical difficulties in carrying out the census of castes and tabled a report of the registrar general, who heads the census exercise, pointing out that the data so collected will be of no use as the enumerators could not be trained to verify castes of the people.

Those opposing the caste-based census believe that it is a throwback to the medieval times and will lead to a new impetus to casteism in society and in politics.