The SC notifies the Bihar government and declines to halt any action based on caste information

On Friday, the Supreme Court gave the Bihar government notice on a petition challenging a caste-based survey in the state and declined to halt any proceedings related to the release of the caste census data.

Justices Sanjiv Khanna and SVN Bhatti’s bench made it plain that nothing will be kept pending at this time.

The court ruled that since doing so would be improper, it cannot prevent the state government or any other authority from making a decision.

However, the court said that it will review any matter relating to caste-based survey data and assess the question of whether the state government has the authority to carry out such exercises.

The Bihar government was also questioned by the court on the publication of the data.

The Patna High Court’s decision to sustain the caste census carried out by the Bihar Government was being contested in court via petitions.

The petitioner’s attorney informed the court that the caste survey results had already been released by the Bihar government, raising objections and concerns from a number of sources.

Organizations like Ek Soch Ek Prayas and Youth for Equality, who have questioned the legitimacy and authority of the caste-based poll, are among the petitioners.

The central government also joined the legal battle, asserting that the Census Act of 1948 grants the Central Government sole jurisdiction to carry out census-related operations in a file with the Supreme Court known as an affidavit.

In accordance with constitutional principles and relevant regulations, the affidavit reiterated the government’s commitment to uplifting Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), Socially and Educationally Backward Classes (SEBCs), and Other Backward Classes (OBCs).

One of the petitions questioned the Patna High Court’s decision to reject claims against the Nitish Kumar government’s decision to carry out the caste-based survey, which was argued by attorney Tanya Shree on behalf of petitioner Akhilesh Kumar. The order from the High Court was released on August 1.

The petitioner had alleged that the state of Bihar had violated the Union Government’s only power by starting a caste-based survey without the permission of the Constitution.

The petitioner had emphasized that several constitutional articles, notably the division of powers between the state and the union, were violated by the Bihar government’s announcement of June 6, 2022, and the appointment of a District Magistrate for monitoring that followed.

The petitioner claimed that the whole process lacked legislative authority and was tainted with ulterior motives.

The petitioner emphasized that the Bihar State Government’s announcement was invalid since only the Union Government had the jurisdiction to conduct a census in India.

Similar arguments challenging the caste-based survey requested by the Nitish Kumar government were previously rejected by the Patna High Court.

The survey’s objective is to gather information on individuals from all castes, subcastes, and socioeconomic backgrounds throughout 38 districts in Bihar, where there are an estimated 12.70 crore people.