NEW DELHI: Karnataka deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar on Sunday ruled out any “hasty decision” regarding the Socio-Economic and Education Survey report, popularly known as the ‘caste census’, which was recently tabled before the state cabinet.
Shivakumar told reporters at Doddaballapur near state capital Bengaluru, “The chief minister (Siddaramaiah) has spoken about it (caste census). I have not yet seen the report as I was visiting Belagavi and Mangaluru yesterday. It has to be discussed in the cabinet. Apparently, the CM has said that it will be discussed in the assembly too. No one will take any hasty decision.”
He promised there would be “justice for all.”
Shivakumar, who also leads the Karnataka unit of the ruling Congress party, said, “Some may be making political statements, but we will understand the facts and do justice for all.”
Meanwhile, Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge, who is also from Karnataka, said he wouldn’t like to comment on the report as he is not aware about what is in it.
Kharge stated, “I don’t know, because I have no information about what will be discussed in the cabinet or what is there in the report. If I get the report I can say something.”
The Karnataka ‘caste census’ report
The Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes‘ report was placed before the state cabinet on Friday, and it will be discussed at a special cabinet meeting on April 17.
The commission, under its then chairman K Jayaprakash Hegde, had submitted the report to chief minister Siddaramaiah on February 29 last year, amid objections raised by certain sections of society and voices against it from within the Congress as well.
According to government sources, out of the 5.98 crore citizens covered under the survey which was conducted in 2015, about 70 per cent or 4.16 crore people come under various OBC other backward classes) categories.
The commission has recommended hiking the OBC quota from the current 32 per cent to to 51 per cent, the sources said.
By giving OBCs a 51 per cent reservation quota, along with the existing 17 per cent for SCs and 7 per cent for STs, it will take the state’s total reservation to 75 per cent, beyond the uniform 50% limit set by the Supreme Court.
As per the report, Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) together seem to form the largest social block in the state with their population at 1.52 crore.
Though the caste-wise break-up of OBCs is not available from the report yet, Muslims, who alone come under Category-2B of OBC are with a population of 75.25 lakh, while the general category at 29.74 lakh.
Karnataka’s two dominant communities — Vokkaliags and Lingayats — have been expressing reservations about the survey, calling it “unscientific”, and have demanded that it be rejected and a fresh survey be conducted.
The Siddaramaiah-led Congress government (2013-2018) had in 2015 commissioned the survey.
The state’s Backward Classes Commission, under its then chairperson H Kantharaju, was tasked with preparing a caste census report. The survey work was completed in 2018 towards the end of Siddaramaiah’s first tenure as Chief Minister, and the report was finalised by his successor K Jayaprakash Hegde.
(With PTI inputs)
