On January 20, a Supreme Court division bench led by Justices B.R. Gavai and Vikram Nath refused to hear petitions challenging the Bihar government's decision to conduct a caste-based census in the state. On January 7, this year, the Bihar government launched the caste survey. The plan is to digitally compile data on each family in the survey from the panchayat to the district level using a mobile application. The petitions urged the Supreme Court to overturn the State Government's decision to conduct the caste-based census. A Bench, on the other hand, was unimpressed with the petitioners' Counsels' submissions and suspected their motivation for filing the petition.

The Bench dismissed all of the petitions as withdrawn, granting the 'liberty to seek appropriate legal remedies'.

The matter was mentioned for urgent listing before the Chief Justice of India, D.Y. Chandrachud, on January 11, 2023, and he agreed to list the petition.

The petitions essentially seek to overturn the State Government's notification on the grounds that the subject of the census is listed in List 1 of the Seventh Schedule to the Indian Constitution and that only the Union Government is authorised to conduct the census. According to the petitions, only the central government has the authority to make rules, appoint Census Staff, requisition premises for taking censuses, pay compensation, obtain information, and delegate functions of the Central Government with regard to requisitioning.

Significantly, another argument raised in one of the petitions is that the State government's notification is illegal and unconstitutional and that it is an attempt to undermine the country's unity and integrity, as well as to sow social discord along caste lines for petty vote bank politics.

Case Title: Ek Soch Ek Prayas v. UoI And Ors. and connected cases
Citation: WP(C) No. 71/2023