Bangalore, Oct 25 (BangaloreMirror): Any discussion on Karnataka's politics is incomplete without a reference to the dominance of two castes; Lingayats and Vokkaligas, over its narrative. It is not without reasoning. The two have dominated representation in the Assembly and the Lok Sabha seats from the state as well as the top political seat of Karnataka ever since independence. And ever since incumbent chief minister Siddaramaiah proved he was very sincere and particular about holding the first-ever caste census to get every possible detail of castes and economic conditions of the citizens, it has been perceived as a threat to the dominance of the two castes.
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Siddaramaiah is from the Kuruba community which is generally believed to the third largest in the state.
His being the leader of the Ahinda movement (an acronym for minorities-backward castes and Dalits in Kannada) also casts a doubt in the minds of the Vokkaligas and Lingayats about Siddaramaiah's motive.
After the Mirror report which detailed how sub-castes and ancestral professions of the people would also be documented, the leaders of these two communities have, for the first time, openly declared their opposition to the caste census.
Dr Appaji Gowda, president, Vokkaligara Sangha, "Basically, the caste census is an exercise in futility and an attempt to divide the society. The money and manpower being spent could have been better utilised for developing infrastructure, education or even eradicating the caste system. Why do you want to divide the society on caste lines. The new generation will not accept it. People today are more accommodating and there are so many inter-caste marriages taking place. The government is just encouraging casteism."
Bheemanna Khandre, the previous president of All India Veerashaiva Mahasabha, and a senior Congress leader and former minister, said, "I strongly oppose the cast census. It will only further divide the already divided society. The Chief Minister must recall that the All India SC/ST Commission had previously appealed to the President of India requesting implementation of Article 17 which speaks about abolition of untouchability and the caste system. But if they are thinking of still going by the caste lines, then God only can help them."
Personal decision?
Khandre hints that the decision to hold the caste census is a personal wish of the chief minister rather than the Congress party.
He said, "Those who tried to rule the country on caste lines have all perished and it is well recorded in history. I do not know whether it was the party decision or personal decision to conduct the census on caste basis. But I personally condemn the decision."
About the perception that the Vokkaligas and Lingayats would be shown as less numerous than they are perceived now, Appaji Gowda said, "Which becomes the dominant community is not the question. We have had chief ministers from communities that are not numerically big. We had Veerappa Moily, S Bangarappa, Ramakrishna Hegde among others. Even Siddaramaiah is the CM though there are only 12 MLAs from his community. Caste strength will not give anyone political or social power except for fundamentalists. Calculating caste will not get anyone economic benefit also. It is pure fundamentalist politics which Karnataka does not need."
Lingayat religious leader Kedara Jagadguru Bheema Shankaralinga Bhagavatpadaru said, "Government will not gain anything out of the caste census. Besides creating confusion in the minds of people, it will only further widen the gap between various communities. We should talk of bringing everybody together and not divide them further on the lines of caste. When I had met the CM previously, I had expressed the same sentiment and when I meet him next month after returning from Kedarnath, I will be conveying the same."