Caste must not be allowed to divide us, whatever the circumstance: CJI Kant

Chief Justice of India Surya Kant remarked on Tuesday (November 25, 2025) that society must not be “divided” on caste lines, after a submission was made about the Union Government’s announcement on conducting a caste census.

“Whatever we do, I think we should not divide society on caste lines,” Chief Justice Kant observed orally.

The top judge was responding to a submission by senior advocate Indira Jaising about the government’s announcement of a caste census.

“There has been no caste census after 1931. That was the last one. The Government of India has announced a caste census precisely to ascertain the percentage of the Other Backward Classes (OBC) in the population. This is relevant for Part IX of the Constitution [local self-governance in rural India],” Ms. Jaising said.

Quota in local bodies

The government had announced that caste enumeration would be a part of the next Census in March 2027. The oral remark from the CJI came towards the end of a hearing in which the Bench was considering the issue of political reservation for OBCs in local bodies scheduled to go to polls in Maharashtra.

Contentions were made in court that reservations in 57 out of a total 288 municipal councils and nagar panchayats going to poll on December 2 exceeded the 50% threshold set by a Constitution Bench in K. Krishna Murthy v. Union of India.

The Maharashtra State Election Commission, represented by senior advocate Balbir Singh, acknowledged the breach of the 50% cut-off in the 57 seats.

However, Chief Justice Kant orally said the court would still allow the elections to be held. “The 57 seats would be subject to the outcome of these proceedings. Any further election which you [Election Commission] notify must comply with the 50 per cent ceiling,” the CJI observed.

Elections have not yet been notified in 32 zilla panchayats, 29 municipal corporations and over 330 panchayat samitis in Maharashtra.

Grassroots revival

“Institutions at the grassroots level have to be revived. People are not getting their representatives [in the local bodies]. All of them are being run by bureaucrats. We will allow the election to be held,” Chief Justice Kant clarified why the polls should go ahead.

The local body elections in the State have been stalled since 2022 due to litigation over the implementation of the OBC reservation.

The CJI, while listing the case on November 27, assured the court would devise a “workable arrangement” by which the elections could be held after “ironing out the creases” through an interim order. It also asked the State Election Commission to provide a broad sketch of the percentage of OBCs in the 57 local bodies.

Senior advocate Vikas Singh, for petitioners Rahul Ramesh Wagh and others, argued the State was holding elections as per the 2022 JK Banthia Commission report, which had recommended a 27% quota for OBCs. “If this happens, the aggregate reservation would go up to 70%,” he said.

Ms. Jaising, on the other hand, said the OBC communities should not be deprived of proportionate political representation.

“OBCs must get adequate representation, but is it happening at the cost of everyone being ousted or is it that they can be accommodated, and others can also be reasonably accommodated. We need to see how to balance this,” the CJI told the State Election Commission.

The Bench said it would look into whether the “grey areas” around the 50% cut-off on reservation in local bodies’ elections ought to be referred to a Constitution Bench. The court asked whether “service jurisprudence” ought to be applied to elections.