Srinagar, March 5 -- Congress leader rightly highlighted discrepancies in the present system, where individuals obtained multiple caste certificates-such as OBC, Scheduled Tribe (ST), and other reserved category documents-allowing them to claim benefits under different quotas whenever convenient. He urged Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to initiate a comprehensive caste census as a long-term policy measure to remove ambiguity and streamline welfare programs.

By raising the issue in the Assembly, the Congress may be trying to tap into the grievance among several caste groups about being denied their due share in the government jobs. This grievance is endemic in the country, so the Congress has homed in on this as its main political issue to ...