Amid indications that caste-based census would not be held in the near future, the government on Wednesday admitted that there were differing views on the issue in the Cabinet.
"There are differing views (in the Cabinet), but that does not mean divisions," Law Minister M Veerappa Moily said when asked about the lack of consensus at the Cabinet meeting on Tuesday on conducting caste-based census.
The OBC leader said caste-based census would be 'appropriate' and 'more authentic' because no caste-based data is available with regard to the OBCs since 1931.
When pointed out that Home Minister P Chidambaram had expressed opposition to caste-based census at Tuesday's Cabinet meeting, Moily said he was not opposing but only representing the views of the home ministry.
Moily's Cabinet colleague Farooq Abdullah said the discussions to explore views on caste-based census were for the next census and not the exercise currently underway.
"There is no question of division... The census has already started. So, it is not possible to do it in this census... I don't think it is possible this time to introduce this," Abdullah, Minister for New and Renewable Energy, told media persons outside Parliament.
Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party said it favoured collecting caste data in the on-going Census as correct figures were unavailable, handicapping the Supreme Court, Mandal Commission and other institutions while dealing with the issue.
"The last Census, in which caste was included, was in 1931. As such we are totally unaware of the correct caste data," Deputy Leader of BJP in Rajya Sabha S S Ahluwalia said.