Are We Counting Society to Understand It, or to Divide It?
N. Singh · ·7 min read
Translated from the original Hindi · मूल हिंदी लेख पढ़ें
Suppose fifty children study in Class 8 of your school. One day, a new teacher arrives in class and prepares a detailed list of all the children. He checks which children lack notebooks and textbooks, who do not have shoes and socks, and which children are unable to bring lunch from home. Thereafter, the teacher arranges books from the library and additional nutrition in the mid-day meal for these underprivileged children. Everyone would applaud such a headcount, because its sole aim is to assist, bring about equality, and move forward by carrying everyone along.
But now, consider the other side of the coin.
Suppose a cunning student in the class begins a headcount to see which child comes from which neighbourhood, who belongs to which caste or religion, and then poisons the minds of children from one neighbourhood against those of another so that next time, he himself becomes the class monitor and takes control of the class fund. Would you call such counting justified?
Today, in twenty-first-century India, this very seminal question has become paramount: Is the counting of castes being conducted to understand the last person in society and fulfil their basic needs, or is it merely a new political weapon to win elections, grab power, and divide society into permanent compartments?
The Mathematics of Counting and the Intent of Politics: Historical Background
More than seven decades have elapsed since our nation gained independence. When the country achieved freedom, visionary leaders in the Constituent Assembly such as Babasaheb Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, and Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru envisioned that the ‘divide and rule’ system imposed by the colonial British would come to an end. In 1931, the British conducted a comprehensive caste census for the last time, the primary objective of which was to measure the fault lines of internal division within Indian society in order to weaken the freedom movement.
Independent India’s first Home Minister, Sardar Patel, removed the caste column in the first census of 1951 so that the foundation of a harmonious, modern, and casteless Indian society could be laid.
Yet what is the reality today? Today, whenever an election approaches—be it for a panchayat (village council), a Legislative Assembly, or the Lok Sabha—debates on policy, development, healthcare, and education recede into the background. On the centre stage, only a single calculation takes hold:
- What is the vote share of which caste in which constituency?
- Which sub-caste should be pitted against another to balance the electoral equation?
- Will a candidate’s merit be determined by their character and public service, or by the bulk vote bank of their caste?
Data (statistics) in itself is neutral and sacrosanct. Whether it is science, modern economics, or public welfare schemes—no policy can succeed without accurate data. But the question is not about the data; it is about the ‘political intent’ lurking behind the data.
Social Justice versus Electoral Arithmetic: A Comparative Study
| Dimension | Genuine Social Justice | Merely Electoral Caste Census |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Objective | Uplift of the last person in line (the poor, landless, malnourished) | Capturing power by mobilising bulk caste vote banks |
| Policy Focus | Primary education, quality hospitals, and employment opportunities | Only quotas in government jobs and token positions |
| Social Impact | Development of mutual fraternity, cooperation, and civic harmony | Permanent animosity, distrust, and bitterness between castes |
| Identification of Beneficiaries | Economically weaker and genuinely destitute families | Already affluent ‘creamy layer’ and influential sections within the caste |
The Bitter Truth from the Book: N. Singh’s Direct Warning
Author N. Singh, launching a direct assault on this duplicity in his acclaimed book ‘From Counting to Power: India’s Untold War’, writes:
“This is where the fundamental question of this book arises—are we counting society to understand it, or to divide it? This question is inconvenient, but necessary. Because if the elements of selfishness and insecurity are still dominant within human beings, then any system—no matter how impartial it may appear—can become an instrument of division through them.”
— N. Singh (From Counting to Power, p. 13)
The author further sounds a grave warning about the moral degeneration of Indian democracy:
“In India’s opportunistic democratic system after 1989, the purpose of power has become exploitation and self-preservation in office, rather than service. The cunning establishment is now turning every self-seeker into a patriot and casting suspicion on every discerning critic… The attempt to use the caste census as an ultimate tool for a few years to attain power appears to be the new weapon of those who relish power. They know that when the public begins to demand bread, schools, and hospitals, they will have nothing to offer; so, entangle the public in the old pigeonholes of caste.”
— (From Counting to Power, p. 14)
What is the Real Solution? A Pragmatic Policy Roadmap
If we truly wish to make India a strong, prosperous, and undivided nation, we must break free from this hypocritical game of headcounts and implement the following fundamental reforms:
- Data Must Be for Welfare, Not for Hatred: The primary objective of any socio-economic survey should be that policies are framed on its basis to deliver clean drinking water, pucca houses (permanent brick-and-mortar homes), modern schools, and hospitals to the poorest settlements, not to pit castes against one another at election rallies.
- The Unit Must Be the ‘Family’, Not Bulk Caste Groups: The basis of welfare schemes should be the economic condition of individual families rather than wholesale caste groups. A family that has become a crorepati (multimillionaire) after reaping government benefits for three generations should be excluded from the list, while the one living in a hovel must receive top priority.
- Massive Investment in Public Primary Education: Until the quality of government schools matches that of private convent schools, counting castes will remain nothing more than a false consolation. Education is the sole instrument capable of breaking the shackles of birth and ushering in genuine equality.
- Civic Consciousness and the Voter’s Self-Respect: As long as voters do not take off the spectacles of caste while casting their ballots, political parties will treat them merely as ‘voting machines’. Citizens must ask the party—“Spare me the praise of my caste; tell us how many jobs you have created for our children over the past five years?”
A Question Worth Contemplating (The Central Message of the Book)
Can a headcount truly deliver social justice? Or is it merely a fresh ploy by those seasoned players of power who, in every election, divide the public under new pretexts to secure the cream for themselves?
To understand this untold truth of Indian politics without any equivocation, and to comprehend the true character of the post-independence struggle for power, every conscientious citizen ought to read the first chapter of N. Singh’s acclaimed book ‘From Counting to Power: India’s Untold War’.
This is where the fundamental question of this book arises—are we counting society to understand it, or to divide it? This question is inconvenient, but necessary.