Decision on caste census? Congress OBC leaders to meet Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah

Bengaluru: Amid political turmoil, top backward class leaders in the ruling Congress met on Thursday and resolved to ask Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to act on the Socio-Economic & Educational Survey, known popularly as caste census.

Labour Minister Santhosh Lad, Guarantee Implementation Committee chairperson H M Revanna, former Legislative Council chairperson V R Sudarshan, MLC Umashree, Koppal MLA Raghavendra Hitnal and others—mostly Siddaramaiah loyalists—huddled behind closed doors.

“We decided that the caste census must be brought before the Cabinet immediately,” Revanna told reporters. “The census report is important to realise benefits in this caste-based system,” he said.

Amid opposition from the Lingayats and Vokkaligas, Siddaramaiah received the caste census report from the Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes in February this year. The government did nothing thereafter, plausibly fearing consequences in the Lok Sabha polls.

It was during Siddaramaiah's first tenure as CM that he commissioned the survey, which was carried out between April 11 and May 30 in 2015. The government spent Rs 164.84 crore on this.

A delegation led by four former chairpersons of the backward classes commission—C S Dwarakanath, Ravivarma Kumar, H Kantharaj and Jayaprakash Hegde—will meet Siddaramaiah on October 7 to discuss this and other matters concerning OBCs.

Revanna said the delegation will seek implementation of political reservation for OBCs in local body polls. “There’s been a delay and the matter is in court. It must be set right so that OBC leadership is groomed,” he said.

The leaders’ meeting on Thursday also discussed the need to prioritise OBCs in the appointments that will be made to various boards and corporations.

“We will also seek the appointment of a new chairperson for the backward classes commission. The vacant post should be filled up without any delay,” Revanna said.

It is also speculated that the OBC leaders discussed strategies to back Siddaramaiah, a Kuruba, who faces a court-ordered investigation and the Enforcement Directorate in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) scam.