UP govt orders removal of caste references from police records, bans caste-based rallies

Lucknow, Sep 22 (PTI) The Uttar Pradesh government has ordered the immediate removal of all caste references from police records and public notices following an Allahabad High Court judgement aimed at eliminating caste-based discrimination, officials said on Monday.

Caste-based rallies and public events with political motives have also been banned across the state, while social media content promoting caste pride or hatred will be closely monitored, they said.

The government has also instructed that vehicles displaying caste-based stickers or slogans be fined under the Motor Vehicles Act.

The order, issued to all police units and district administrations late Sunday, has been taken in compliance with a September 16 Allahabad High Court judgement that was aimed at eliminating caste-based discrimination, a senior official said.

Officiating chief secretary Deepak Kumar has instructed that the caste of accused persons should no longer be recorded in police registers, case memos, arrest documents, or displayed on police station notice boards, according to the official order.

"The directive has been issued in compliance with the HC order and is effective immediately," Kumar told PTI.

The state's Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and Systems (CCTNS) portal will also be updated to delete caste fields, and until then, officials have been told to leave such fields blank, the order said.

It further mandates that police records include both the father's and mother's names of an accused, and that caste-based stickers or slogans on vehicles be challaned under the Motor Vehicles Act.

Authorities have also been asked to remove boards or signs in towns and villages that glorify caste identities or mark areas as belonging to a particular caste, the government order said.

Caste-based rallies and public events with political motives have been banned across the state, while social media content promoting caste pride or hatred will be closely monitored. Strict action has been directed against those spreading caste-based enmity online, it stated.

The government has asked officials to ensure "immediate and effective compliance" with the order and train subordinate officers to raise awareness about the new policy.

The high court's order in the Praveen Chetri vs State of UP and others case prohibited police from mentioning the caste of accused persons and instructed the state to prevent caste glorification in public and digital spaces.

Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav took a swipe at the government over the order. "And what will be done to eradicate the caste discrimination that has been entrenched in the mind for 5000 years?" the former chief minister said in a post in Hindi on X.

"And what will be done to eliminate the caste discrimination arising from caste display through clothing, attire, and symbolic markers? And what will be done to end the mentality of caste discrimination that involves asking about 'caste' before someone's name upon meeting them?" he asked. Yadav also wondered what measures will be taken to put an end to the thinking of caste discrimination that involves making someone clean their house. "And what will be done to terminate the conspiracies filled with caste discrimination that involve defaming someone by levelling false and humiliating accusations?" PTI KIS MAN KVK KVK