CPI(M) asks Tamil Nadu to reject committee on demographic changes

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) has urged the Tamil Nadu government to boycott a High-Level Committee on Demographic Changes established by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs. CPI(M) State secretary P. Shanmugam condemned the committee in a statement on Friday and called on the State government to reject its questionnaire.

He alleged that the panel’s work reflected what he described as the anti-minority agenda of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and the Bharatiya Janata Party. According to Shanmugam, the committee has prepared a 35-point questionnaire to collect information from States. He questioned the decision to establish what he called an extra-legal committee while the official Census remains pending.

The CPI(M) objected particularly to the proposed collection of religion-wise information on enrolment in faith-based schools, land ownership transfers and religious conversions among tribal communities. Shanmugam also highlighted the committee’s interest in religious details concerning people deleted from electoral rolls. He said the absence of a demographer from the panel further indicated that it had political rather than technical objectives.

The CPI(M) said participation could affect State autonomy and urged the Tamil Nadu government to oppose the committee publicly. It called on the government to refuse to complete the questionnaire and to deny the panel access to State data. The source material contains the party’s allegations and demands but does not include a response from the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, the BJP or the Tamil Nadu government.

It also does not provide details about the committee’s membership beyond the CPI(M)’s criticism that no demographer was included. The dispute comes amid wider political disagreement over the collection and use of demographic and electoral information. The report, however, does not provide further details about the committee’s mandate or timetable.