1 week Ago By Devaraj B Hirehalli
BENGALURU: Even as the Socio Economic Educational Survey (SEES-2015) report, popularly known as caste census, has triggered an enormous controversy with certain communities -- especially Veerashaiva Lingayats and Vokkaligas -- alleging that they were undercounted, the debate is now shifting to the change of guard in the government. Political leaders and analysts have been left to wonder whether Chief Minister Siddaramaiah resorted to this strategy on the caste survey to consolidate his position as a champion of backward classes, which are shown as the biggest block in the survey, and to safeguard his post. Assembly Opposition Leader R Ashoka alleged that Siddaramaiah is banking on the caste census to not transfer power to Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, as per an agreement reached when Congress won the Assembly elections in 2023.
It was part of a political game to reopen the issue of caste census after a gap of 10 years, he charged. BJP state president BY Vijayendra said in Davanagere on Monday, “Whenever Siddaramaiah feels insecure about his position, he brings up the caste issue.” Siddaramaiah’s supporter and former minister HM Revanna, also a Kuruba like the CM, had earlier said, “Siddaramaiah, already an established mass leader, need not adopt such strategy to strengthen his position.
” A second-line Dalit Congress leader said Siddaramaiah, who is CM for the second term, will adhere to the high command’s decision. But it is an open secret that some Dalit leaders within the government are nurturing the dream of becoming chief minister, hoping that Siddaramaiah, a champion of AHINDA -- an acronym for minorities, backward classes and Dalits -- would propose a Dalit’s name to the high command when he steps down. However, some Congress leaders attribute sudden keenness to bring out the caste census to Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi’s insistence on its implementation.
This is part of a larger political plan to woo backward classes across the country by showcasing the Karnataka model, they added. Siddaramaiah in Belagavi on Sunday revealed that the decision to present the caste census to the cabinet was taken after he met Rahul and got the latter’s consent. “There is a clear plan as Siddaramaiah wants to project himself as the champion of backward classes and also stall any possibility of efforts to replace him as chief minister.
Shifting the attention away from the change of guard is also being discussed as a possibility,” said political scientist Prof Sandeep Shastri. On resolving the caste census imbroglio, he suggested a fresh survey. “Unless the government satisfies people about the authenticity of the survey, there is no question of getting people’s agreement on the numbers.
The way forward is to either set up a committee on social justice and review the survey which is ten years old or to conduct a fresh survey,” he said..
