The Siddaramaiah-led Karnataka government’s Socio-economic and Educational Survey or the caste survey has been facing various hurdles ranging from strong objections from the Opposition parties to dissent from within a section of the ruling Congress, to various administrative and technical problems.
Since the launch of the caste survey on September 22, there have been calls to boycott it. A petition was also filed in the Karnataka High Court against the enumeration of various various caste groups in the state, which was rejected by the court. The caste count being carried out by the Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes (KSCBC) at a cost of Rs 420 crore will continue till October 9.
The Siddaramaiah dispensation has maintained that the caste survey would pave the way for a “more equitable society” as the enumeration data would help the government to implement various welfare schemes and empower the deprived and vulnerable groups more effectively.
The fresh survey was ordered by the Congress government after it decided to junk a similar exercise carried out by the H Kantharaju Commission-led KSCBC, whose report was submitted to the government in February 2024.
While the Siddaramaiah government claimed that the 2015 survey report was dropped as its data was “outdated”, there were indications that the state’s dominant Vokkaliga and Lingayat communities piled pressure on the Congress leadership to scrap the report and its recommendations. Although this had come as a setback to the CM, a vocal proponent of the caste survey, he found some succour as the Congress high command gave its green signal to conduct the exercise again.
That the Congress has promised to implement the caste survey report in its manifesto for the 2023 state Assembly polls helped Siddaramaiah’s cause despite opposition from party heavyweights such as his rival, Deputy CM D K Shivakumar, a prominent Vokkaliga leader.
‘New castes’
Even before the caste survey started, a list of castes published by the KSCBC drew fire from the principal Opposition BJP and dominant caste groups. The BJP alleged that in the list of 1,561 castes, “new castes” such as Christian Vokkaligas, Christian Lingayats, Brahmin Christians, Kuruba Christians and 29 others were included. The BJP called it an attempt to “manipulate” the reservation system, maintaining that “those who have converted are not eligible for reservation”.
In his response, KSCBC chairman Madhusudhan R Naik said the caste list published on the eve of the survey was not final and that the caste names in it were already part of the Kantharaju panel’s report. However, with even Siddaramaiah’s Cabinet colleagues crying foul, the KSCBC decided to blank out the caste names linked to Christians in the mobile application developed by it for the survey.
Boycott calls
Just a day after the caste survey kicked off, the high court heard a petition filed by various organisations including Karnataka Rajya Vokkaligara Sangha, Akhila Bharatha Veerashaiva Mahasabha and others, which challenged the validity of the exercise. The petitioners alleged that it was a “caste census” in disguise and that its data could be “misused” for political ends. Among their other arguments was a claim that the use of the Aadhaar number for the survey for verification violated the right to privacy.
In its order last Thursday, the high court declined to stay the survey but imposed some conditions for the exercise. These included directions for the Commission to issue a public notification informing people that the participation in the survey would be voluntary and that no person would be obligated to disclose information sought in the survey questionnaire comprising 60 queries. The court also said that the data should be shared only with the Commission and not the government.
BJP’s stance
BJP leaders such as Union Minister Pralhad Joshi and MP Tejasvi Surya have said that they would boycott the caste survey. “Neither me nor my family members will provide any details to the enumerators,” Joshi said last Sunday, while questioning the scope of the survey.
Surya also called for a boycott of the survey, raising concerns over the security of personal data being collected. He alleged that the exercise was driven with “political malice” and was intended to “pit one caste against another”.
However, state BJP president B Y Vijayendra said the party has not taken any decision to boycott the caste survey. He said the BJP has decided that all Hindu communities including Veerashaiva Lingayats, Vokkaligas, Dalits and Other Backward Classes (OBCs) should declare themselves as “Hindu” in the survey’s religion column. This was seen as the BJP’s counter to calls by a section of Veerashaiva Lingayat leaders that the people of the community should declare their religion under the “Others” category in the survey.
A recent convention of the Lingayat leaders held at Hubballi indicated that they were divided over the issue along political lines. While BJP leaders from the community opposed the decision by the Akhila Bharatha Veerashaiva Mahasabha over the issue, those in the Congress backed it.
Govt’s position
Siddaramaiah issued a statement Monday, saying that some BJP leaders’ opposition to the caste survey “revealed their true colours”. “The survey being conducted by the State Backward Classes Commission is not confined to any single caste or religion. It is a comprehensive survey of the social, economic, and educational conditions of the seven crore people of Karnataka. This survey is not against anyone. It is in favour of everyone. Its main objective is to achieve social, economic, and educational equality and ensure fair and equal share and opportunity for all,” he said.
Accusing the BJP leaders of having a “manuvadi mindset”, the CM said their objections stemmed from “the regressive idea that wealth, opportunities, and representation must stay confined to the privileged within each caste and religion”. Siddaramaiah also pointed to the caste surveys carried out by the Nitish Kumar-led government in Bihar, where the BJP is Nitish’s coalition partner now, and in Telangana where, he added, it was not opposed by the party.
The Commission chairman also tried to clear the air about the high court’s order, saying some leaders’ statements calling for boycotting the survey was against the spirit of the court’s ruling.
“Since citizens are voluntarily participating in the survey, there is no compulsion. Such public statements dissuading them from participation are not in the larger public interest,” Naik said.
Survey progress
With a section of enumerators remaining absent from carrying out the exercise in blocks assigned to them, the state government decided to crack the whip last week by initiating action against such officials and teachers. While three of them were suspended in Davanagere and one in Raichur on September 27, eight assistant teachers were suspended in Mysuru Sunday.
The survey is being carried out in 1.22 lakh blocks, with each enumerator assigned 140-150 households. The entire exercise would cover 1.43 crore households across the state.
According to the Commission, as of Tuesday evening a total of 56.34 lakh households were covered comprising a population of 2.11 crore. The exercise has speeded up over the last few days.