PMK founder S. Ramadoss on Sunday criticised the Centre’s announcement that the census will be carried out without gathering details about the Other Backward Classes. The Centre’s move was an affront to social justice, he said.

In a statement, the PMK leader said a caste-wise census should be carried out at least in Tamil Nadu alone.

The Centre was going back on its promise that the 2021 census will seek details about OBCs, he said. “Registrar and Census Commissioner Vivek Joshi has said that collecting details about OBCs will affect the quality of data collection during the 2021 census. This goes against the promise made by the Centre. In 2018, then Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said that details about OBCs will be collected as part of the census,” he noted.

Dr. Ramadoss said it was essential that the country conducted a caste-wise census. “Not just reservation, but social welfare schemes should also be provided to people in need. The Centre should not delay the caste-wise census, thinking it’s controversial,” he said. He batted for 33% reservation for women in State Assemblies and in Parliament.