The vision of a casteless society in India has always been more of an elusive dream than a tangible reality. First envisioned by social reformers like Mohan Das Karamchand Gandhi, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, and leaders of the independence movement, the goal was to build a nation where caste-based discrimination would vanish. The Constituent Assembly, in 1949, incorporated this ethos into the Indian Constitution, outlawing untouchability and striving for a society based on equality. However, despite these noble aspirations, the slogan of a casteless society has steadily lost relevance, buried by political opportunism, social inertia, and deep-rooted historical divisions. The push for a casteless India gained momentum post-independence, with leaders like Nehru championing a secular and egalitarian society. The State introduced affirmative action policies, including reservations in education and public employment, to uplift marginalized communities like Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), and later, Other Backward Classes (OBCs). However, while these measures aimed to level the playing field, they inadvertently became political tools for vote-bank consolidation rather than stepping stones toward eradicating caste divisions. The Mandal Commission report of the 1980s intensified caste-based politics, officially recognizing OBCs and expanding the reservation system. What started as a temporary measure to uplift disadvantaged communities soon turned into a political weapon, fracturing the social fabric further instead of dissolving caste identities. Successive governments, irrespective of ideology, have perpetuated this system, as it serves to secure electoral gains by appealing to caste-based loyalties.
The efforts for a casteless society did not die a sudden death; they were systematically sabotaged over decades. Political parties bear significant blame for reducing caste identity to a convenient lever for power. Instead of promoting a unified national identity, leaders across the spectrum have continued to exploit caste divides to build vote banks. As political alliances were forged and broken based on caste demographics, the idea of a casteless India became an electoral casualty. Even today, caste dominates political discourse during elections, reducing citizens to mere representatives of their caste affiliations rather than equal stakeholders in a democratic society. However, politicians aren’t solely to blame. Indian society itself has resisted abandoning its caste consciousness. Social hierarchies continue to be reinforced through family traditions, marriage customs, and local communities. The failure to transform this mindset has resulted in the persistence of caste as a social reality, despite its legal abolition decades ago. It is a grim reflection of how social change, when not coupled with cultural reform, remains largely superficial.
In recent years, the demand for caste surveys has resurfaced, especially after the Supreme Court’s ruling in 2022 that upheld reservations as necessary to address social inequities. This renewed demand is rooted in the need to reassess the socio-economic status of communities, especially OBCs, to ensure that affirmative action benefits are reaching the genuinely disadvantaged. The Bihar government’s recent caste-based census, followed by other states contemplating similar measures, highlights how caste remains deeply entrenched in Indian polity. But the renewed call for caste surveys also signals the death knell of the casteless society ideal. These surveys, while crucial for policy formulation, inherently reinforce caste consciousness. Instead of bridging social gaps, they often serve to reaffirm caste identities, further deepening divisions. The very tools meant to alleviate caste-based disparities end up institutionalizing caste identities, pushing the dream of a casteless India further into oblivion. The rhetoric of a casteless society has lost its vigour in the face of political expediency and social reality. As India grapples with caste surveys to refine affirmative action, the dream of a truly casteless nation seems like a utopia—always on the horizon but never within reach. Ironically, the same democratic processes intended to unite a diverse nation are now being used to perpetuate the very divisions they were meant to eradicate. For India to reclaim the vision of a casteless society, it would require a genuine shift in both political priorities and social consciousness—something that appears increasingly unlikely in the current climate.