Key Takeaways
- The caste census report was submitted in 2017 but remains unreleased, prompting political pressure.
- BK Hariprasad and KH Muniyappa publicly urged CM Siddaramaiah to disclose the data.
- Opposition from the Lingayats and Vokkaligas centers on fears of losing political hegemony.
Bengaluru: A day after Bihar published its caste census report, former Congress general secretary and Karnataka MLC BK Hariprasad urged the Siddaramaiah government to release its data on the same which was submitted in 2017.
“Bihar, which is governed by the INDIA alliance, has released its caste census. Rahul Gandhi Ji has spoken passionately about ensuring justice for the backward classes. It is now imperative for Karnataka to forthwith release the caste census conducted in 2017,” he Xed.
Karnataka Minister KH Muniyappa backed Hariprasad’s demand to release the caste report. He said the caste census must be released to realise the dreams of providing government facilities and equal rights to the last man.
“The government will soon take a decision on accepting it. None of the communities would be affected by the report,” he said.
Siddaramaiah had commissioned the Other Backward Classes Commission to conduct the caste census report in his first stint as the chief minister.
The report was submitted to the government in 2017, and since then it is yet to be accepted, and has been kept in cold storage fearing loss of vote base.
The Lingayats and Vokkaligas opposed the caste census report fearing that it might end their political hegemony.
In June this year, CM Siddaramaiah hinted that the government might consider releasing the survey report.
He has asked the OBC Commission chairman Jayaprakash Hegde to process the data and submit the final report.
