Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Wednesday said an appropriate decision on conducting a caste-based census will be taken only after seeking opinion from all sections of society and keeping public sentiments in mind.
Mr. Shinde was speaking on the sidelines of his visit to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s (RSS) headquarters at Reshimbagh in Nagpur where he paid tributes to RSS founder K. B. Hedgewar and the second ‘sarsanghchalak’ M.S. Golwalkar.
Mr. Shinde, whose Shiv Sena faction is an ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Maharashtra, was asked about Vidarbha RSS functionary Shridhar Gadge’s recent remarks that a caste-based census was not in the nation’s interest. “Maharashtra is a progressive State and its culture and traditions are different from other States. Here, all castes and communities live, work and celebrate in harmony. Hence, after taking the opinion of all sections of society, an appropriate decision will be taken on whether or not to conduct a census keeping the feelings of the people in mind,” said Mr. Shinde.
