Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru
Bengaluru, April 13: Union Minister of State for Railways and Jal Shakti, V. Somanna, on Sunday warned that implementing the controversial caste census report could trigger significant confusion across Karnataka.
Addressing the media in Bengaluru, Minister Somanna strongly criticised Chief Minister Siddaramaiah for pushing forward with the report’s implementation, accusing him of prioritising political survival over public interest.
“I am pained that CM Siddaramaiah can stoop to this level. If he goes ahead with implementing the caste census report, he will be remembered as a villain in history,” Somanna said.
Calling the report a “fabricated drama”, Somanna stated that BJP leaders would soon convene to determine their next course of action. “This caste census report appears to be a fabricated drama. BJP leaders will meet and collectively decide the future course of action on this matter,” he added.
He further claimed that a significant number of Congress leaders – between 50 and 60% – privately admit that the data in the report is flawed. “The survey was not conducted properly to collect reliable data, and the report lacks integrity,” he stated.
Somanna also questioned the timing of the move, saying the chief minister had ample opportunity to act earlier. “Even though CM Siddaramaiah knows that the report is flawed, he is still trying to implement it. It will create confusion across the state,” he reiterated.
“I request CM Siddaramaiah to conduct a fresh survey. He can appoint whoever he wants and complete it within one and a half years. He still has three years left in his term,” Somanna urged.
The Union Minister went further, warning of political consequences: “I warn CM Siddaramaiah that implementing this report could prove to be a death sentence for his political career. His own people have conspired to bring him down,” he alleged.
Stressing unity, he said, “There is no such thing as an upper or lower class in society. Let us not pit one community against another.”
Reflecting on his past association with the chief minister, Somanna said, “I have worked with him as a minister for many years. I pity his current situation. Recently, he was summoned by the party high command and received instructions in New Delhi.”
The caste census saga dates back to 2014, when then Chief Minister Siddaramaiah ordered the Karnataka Socio-Economic and Educational Census. Conducted under the leadership of then Backward Classes Commission Chairman H Kantharaju, the survey cost approximately Rs 169 crore and was completed in 2016. However, successive governments – including the Congress-JD(S) coalition led by H.D. Kumaraswamy and the BJP governments under B.S. Yediyurappa and Basavaraj Bommai – kept the report in cold storage.
In 2020, the BJP government appointed Jayaprakash Hegde as the new Commission chairman, but the findings were not made public. Hegde submitted the final report to the Siddaramaiah-led government on February 29, 2024.
Both the BJP and JD(S) have opposed the report’s implementation. Prominent communities such as the Lingayats and Vokkaligas have also raised concerns, claiming the report misrepresents their population strength and is detrimental to their political standing.
According to sources, the report submitted to the Congress-led state cabinet on April 10 recommends that Muslims, pegged at 18.08% of the population, receive an 8% reservation—up from the current 4%.
It is also reported that the Commission has recommended raising total reservation beyond the 75% mark. The survey estimates the population of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) at 4.18 crore, Scheduled Castes (SCs) at 1.09 crore, and Scheduled Tribes (STs) at 42.81 lac, suggesting that OBC groups constitute nearly 70% of the state’s population.
The Lingayat population is reportedly 66.35 lac (11.09%), while the Vokkaligas number 61.68 lac. Both communities, influential in Karnataka’s politics, have expressed reservations over the findings, labelling the report as flawed.
Union Minister Somanna himself hails from the Lingayat community.
A special cabinet meeting is scheduled for April 17 to deliberate on the report’s recommendations. While no official statement has been made public, several contents of the report have already surfaced.