DMK President M.K. Stalin has criticized the Union Government’s proposed open-ended format for recording caste details in Census 2027, warning that allowing enumerators to manually type caste names without a drop-down list will cause widespread discrepancies. He noted that earlier trials with open-ended entries produced chaotic statistical outputs, including false indications of millions of distinct caste groups.
Stalin called on the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly to adopt a special resolution during its current session to press the Centre for a standardized enumeration system. He urged the Ministry of Home Affairs to consult state governments and integrate official lists of Backward Classes and Most Backward Classes, emphasizing that structured digital selection is necessary for error-free demographic data.
Rejecting the Centre’s argument that OBC classifications pertain to social classes rather than specific castes as unacceptable, Stalin’s demand joins growing political debate over profiling methodologies. The Tamil Nadu government is expected to discuss the proposal as opposition parties align behind the demand to prevent welfare schemes from misallocating funds.