Karnataka: State Commission for Backward Classes to handover caste census report to CM Siddaramaiah

The time for revealing the much debated caste census has come in Karnataka. The Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes will be providing the caste census report to the Congress government shortly. Reports suggest that the report would be in the hands of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on 29th February. 

The census was conducted by the Siddaramaiah government during his tenure as Chief Minister from 2013 to 2018. It was a survey aimed to understand the changes in the socio-economic conditions in Karnataka. There was a significant delay in publicising the details of the report filed by the team by the former Chairman of the Commission H. Kantharaj.  Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, this has once again become a crucial talking point. 

There has been opposition to this report from leaders of the Vokkaliga and Lingayat communities. A need for an unbiased survey was also highlighted. The current chairperson of the Karnataka Backward Class Commission K Jayaprakash Hegde provided an update about the status of the report.  Jayaprakash affirmed that the report does not have any aspect that would become a cause for worry among influential castes. The commission has developed the report based on data presented by the Kantharaj Commission.