Jharkhand Congress holds protest march demanding separate column for OBCs in 2027 census
Jharkhand Pradesh Congress Committee president Keshav Mahto Kamlesh along with state cabinet ministers and party MLAs Dipika Pandey Singh, Irfan Ansari and party workers raise slogans at a protest rally at Lok Bhavan demanding a separate column for OBCs in the census questionnaire, in Ranchi, 16 Sep 26 Sep 20. | Photo credit:-
The Jharkhand Congress on Wednesday (September 16, 2026) took out a protest march to Lok Bhavan demanding a separate column for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in the census questionnaire. Jharkhand Congress chief Keshav Mahto Kamlesh led the march which started from Bapu Vatika at Morabadi ground in Ranchi.
Senior party leaders, including state finance minister Radhakrishna Kishore, health minister Irfan Ansari, MPs and MLAs, took part in a march of about 2 km that culminated near Lok Bhavan. During the march, Congress workers raised slogans highlighting issues related to representation and rights of the OBC community.
Later, a 10-member Congress delegation met Governor Santosh Kumar Gangwar and submitted a memorandum outlining their demands. AICC secretary Amba Prasad, OBC Congress in-charge Yogendra Yogi and OBC Congress state president Nishant Jaiswal were also in the delegation.
The Congress leaders emphasized to the Governor the need to reveal the data regarding the actual population and socio-economic status of the OBC community through the caste census. To achieve this, they demanded a provision for a separate column for OBCs in the census form.
The delegation said that social, economic and political representation, as well as effective implementation of social programs, can only be realized on the basis of accurate population data.
Congress leaders urged the Governor to convey this demand to the Central Government through appropriate channels. Party leaders argued that getting accurate population data for the OBC community would strengthen the factual basis for policy formulation and representation decisions.
Mr. Kishore pointed out that the OBC population is approximately 65% in the country. “There is a column for STs and SCs, so why not for OBCs who have contributed significantly to the country’s growth,” he said.
Field visits for house listing and household data collection under the first phase of Census 2027 started on 16 May and were completed on 14 June 2026 in Jharkhand. The 2027 census exercise in the state is being conducted in 24 districts, 51 urban local bodies and 264 blocks covering a total of 32,459 villages. The second phase of the census will take place from February 9 to February 28, 2027.
Last month, the Union government announced 40 questions that will, among other things, ask respondents to record their “caste” during the second-phase population census.
The questions that have been added for the first time are — Spouse Name, Nationality, Father and Mother Details, Digital Literacy, Residential Address, Place of Vaccination against Covid-19, Number of Bank Accounts, Passport Number, Availability of Driving License and Mobile, Aadhaar and Voter ID Numbers if available.
Published – 17 Sep 2026 05:42 IST