On November 18, 2023, the Supreme Court issued a notice to the Centre in response to a plea seeking the removal or replacement of certain caste names in official certificates. The petition argued that some of these words are commonly used as insults or derogatory terms in modern society.
New Delhi, Feb 24 – The Supreme Court suggested that the central government consider changing the terminology used in caste certificates for Scheduled Caste (SC) individuals. However, the court emphasized that their rights should remain unchanged.
A bench consisting of Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh acknowledged that the final decision rests with Parliament but said that modifying the nomenclature could help prevent individuals from being identified by caste names.
“Our country has come a long way from 1950 to 2025. Now, in 2025 it is not advisable to use these words and expressions. Yes, it is purely a legislative issue and we have issued notice for the simple reason of sensitising the Centre about the issue. You can change the nomenclature without changing the character of these persons. Hindi has got a very rich vocabulary. You can use anything but these words,” the bench stated.
The Centre’s representative, Additional Solicitor General K M Nataraj, argued that this was a policy decision and warned that removing such words might impact the rights and benefits provided to SC and Scheduled Tribe (ST) individuals.
Justice Surya Kant clarified that the court was not advocating the removal of these terms but merely suggesting their renaming, encouraging Parliament to consider the matter.
“If I was the advocate general and if I had to advise the government then I would have suggested the use of words like Balmiki-1, Balmiki-2 and Balmiki-3, etc. Even Mahatma Gandhi coined a word like Harijan for people of the scheduled caste category. They need not be deprived of their rights by changing the nomenclature,” Justice Surya Kant added.
Advocate Harish Pandey, representing the NGO Akhil Bhartiya Gihara Samaj Parishad, proposed that authorities issue general SC/ST certificates without specifying sub-castes.
The court has now given the Centre six weeks to review the matter before the next hearing.
The Centre, in its affidavit, explained that the first official list of Scheduled Castes was established through a Presidential Order and any modifications to it require Parliamentary approval.
It further noted that India has historically followed a rigid, occupation-based caste hierarchy, where caste status was determined by traditional professions.
“The list of scheduled castes drawn in 1950 was a revised version of the list of scheduled castes under the Government of India (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1936, made under the Government of India Act, 1935, which, in turn, was the continuation of the earlier list of depressed classes,” the Centre stated.
The government clarified that from 1950 to 1978, the President issued six orders specifying certain castes and communities as SCs across different states and union territories. At present, 1,258 castes/communities are classified as Scheduled Castes in 26 states and six Union Territories.
Additionally, the government pointed out that individuals belonging to communities such as “Chuhra,” “Bhangi,” “Chamar,” “Kanjar” could not obtain SC certificates under different caste names like Balmiki, Jatav, or Gihara.
On November 18, 2023, the Supreme Cour issued a notice to the Centre in response to a plea seeking the removal or replacement of certain caste names in official certificates. The petition argued that some of these words are commonly used as insults or derogatory terms in modern society.
The Supreme Court’s suggestion aims to ensure dignity while maintaining the legal and social benefits for Scheduled Castes. The matter will now be reviewed after six weeks, based on the Centre’s response.
