The Indian politics is predominantly marked with caste colour and in most of the states caste based politicians have been playing key role in the outcome of electoral results. The inclusion of OBC caste count may further disintegrate the Indian polity as the decision to include caste headcount is considered as victory for OBC politicians, who have been pressing for a caste count, confident that their numbers are significant and will help stake claim to greater political benefits.

On the social scenario the OBC head count may initiate the number game and it may disintegrate the harmonized society on political lines and politicians can vitiate the social milieu by resorting to baseless and ugly propaganda. This is a fact that OBCs are a part and parcel of the general society since time immemorial and it’s not necessary to do their headcount like SCs and STs, who were neglected and negated by the general society.

It would be pragmatic to count OBCs on economic basis rather than on caste, as it can give further impetus to find the creamy layers in those castes and to give the benefits of 27% reservations to the needy and initiate some economic upliftment programmes for them. It would be political to see the caste census as a step to breaching the 50% cap on quotas set by the Supreme Court and it may lead to a demand for hiking OBC quota in jobs and education in the ratio of population. The government should take a pragmatic decision rather than political keeping the larger interests of the nation in mind.