Supreme Court Dismisses Plea Against Caste Census, Pulls Up Petitioner Over Offensive PIL Language
Bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant rebukes litigant, calls out inappropriate wording in PIL
NEW DELHI, Apr 10: The Supreme Court of India on Friday dismissed a petition seeking directions to the Centre to halt the proposed caste based enumeration, while strongly criticising the language used in the public interest litigation (PIL).
A bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant expressed sharp disapproval of the wording in the plea. The Chief Justice, addressing the petitioner who appeared in person, questioned the use of inappropriate expressions and asked who had drafted the petition, remarking that such language was unacceptable in court proceedings.
The bench, also comprising Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi, refused to entertain the plea, which additionally sought directions for the government to frame policies offering economic incentives to single-child families.
Earlier, on February 2, the apex court had declined to consider a similar PIL that challenged the methodology for collecting, categorising, and verifying caste data in the upcoming census exercise.
The 2027 population count, officially the 16th national census, is set to be a landmark exercise. It will mark the first comprehensive caste enumeration since 1931 and is also expected to be India’s first fully digital census.
