Published – August 24, 2025
Prominent writer and political theorist Kancha Ilaiah Shepherd, who has been nominated to the OBC Ideological Advisory Committee of the Congress, denied rumours that he had joined the Congress party.
Mr. Ilaiah was one of the 23 persons nominated to the committee, from across the country, as per a list released by the party.
“I may have shaped the understanding of the party about the need for the caste census, but it is wrong to say that I have joined the party. This news is being spread by the right-wing forces with malicious intentions,” he said.
Mr. Ilaiah has been supporting Rahul Gandhi’s campaign for the protection of the Constitution and also nation-wide caste census. He recently worked as the vice-chairman of the Independent Expert Working Group that submitted a detailed report on Telangana Socio, Economic, Educational, Employment, and Political Caste survey
Kancha Ilaiah Shepherd named in Congress’s OBC committee; denies taking membership in party
In a recent blog post Kancha Iliah has slammed the BJP’s “pretension” of furthering the OBC agenda through token representations while also criticising the Congress’s negligence towards the community.
Dalit intellectual Kancha Ilaiah
Prominent Dalit rights activist and author Dr Kancha Ilaiah Shepherd has denied joining the Congress after his name appeared in the party’s OBC Ideological Advisory Committee.
Responding to rumours that he has joined the Congress, the former professor of political science at Osmania University clarified that he has not taken membership in the party and that his association with the OBC committee is purely ideological.
“They are spreading rumours that I have joined Congress. I haven’t joined Congress,” Dr Ilaiah told TNIE.
He added that he accepted the membership of the OBC committee as he felt the “need to expose the false narrative of the BJP and RSS” and show how they “cannot liberate” the Shudra, OBC communities.
Dr Ilaiah has been campaigning for a caste census for several years, one of the key political causes taken up by Congress in recent years. He recently worked as vice chairman of the IWG that submitted a detailed report on the Telangana Socio-Economic, Educational, Employment, and Political Caste survey.
Kancha Ilaiah has also actively supported Rahul Gandhi’s campaign for the protection of the constitution and was seen along the former Congress president during the Bharat Jodo Yatra.
In a recent blog post, Dr Ilaiah has slammed the BJP’s “pretension” of furthering the OBC agenda through token representations while also criticising the Congress’s negligence towards the community, which he claimed caused the weakening of the party.
“… in their hundred years of history, the BJP-RSS combine has not produced a single leader like Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel or Kamaraj Nadar from their organisation or party. Most of their OBC leaders were small, dependent leaders of no stature, who were given some visible political positions only after the Mandal period, more particularly after they started the Ram Temple movement,” he wrote.
“No OBC leader from RSS or BJP is known for leading an agrarian movement. Every ideological issue was decided by the Brahmin leaders in RSS. The only leader, as the media now tells us, as the leader of decision-making capacity is said to be Modi, that too during his first term as Prime Minister. His second term onward, he is also going by the RSS direction,” he added.
Kancha Ilaiah Shepherd named in Congress’s OBC committee; denies taking membership in party
In a recent blog post Kancha Iliah has slammed the BJP’s “pretension” of furthering the OBC agenda through token representations while also criticising the Congress’s negligence towards the community.
Dalit intellectual Kancha Ilaiah (File Photo)
24 Aug 2025
Prominent Dalit rights activist and author Dr Kancha Ilaiah Shepherd has denied joining the Congress after his name appeared in the party’s OBC Ideological Advisory Committee.
Responding to rumours that he has joined the Congress, the former professor of political science at Osmania University clarified that he has not taken membership in the party and that his association with the OBC committee is purely ideological.
“They are spreading rumours that I have joined Congress. I haven’t joined Congress,” Dr Ilaiah told TNIE.
He added that he accepted the membership of the OBC committee as he felt the “need to expose the false narrative of the BJP and RSS” and show how they “cannot liberate” the Shudra, OBC communities.
Dr Ilaiah has been campaigning for a caste census for several years, one of the key political causes taken up by Congress in recent years. He recently worked as vice chairman of the IWG that submitted a detailed report on the Telangana Socio-Economic, Educational, Employment, and Political Caste survey.
Kancha Ilaiah has also actively supported Rahul Gandhi’s campaign for the protection of the constitution and was seen along the former Congress president during the Bharat Jodo Yatra.
In a recent blog post, Dr Ilaiah has slammed the BJP’s “pretension” of furthering the OBC agenda through token representations while also criticising the Congress’s negligence towards the community, which he claimed caused the weakening of the party.
“… in their hundred years of history, the BJP-RSS combine has not produced a single leader like Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel or Kamaraj Nadar from their organisation or party. Most of their OBC leaders were small, dependent leaders of no stature, who were given some visible political positions only after the Mandal period, more particularly after they started the Ram Temple movement,” he wrote.
“No OBC leader from RSS or BJP is known for leading an agrarian movement. Every ideological issue was decided by the Brahmin leaders in RSS. The only leader, as the media now tells us, as the leader of decision-making capacity is said to be Modi, that too during his first term as Prime Minister. His second term onward, he is also going by the RSS direction,” he added.
Kancha Ilaiah Shepherd 