Caste census: Dominant castes’ real fear is over political power dynamics at the grassroots

Release of Karnataka caste census data sparks political tension over potential shift in local power dynamics and representation.

The release of the population data of castes/sub-castes in Karnataka, as part of the Socio-Economic and Educational Survey (popularly called caste census), has generated much political heat. Though the dominant Vokkaliga and Veerashaiva-Lingayat communities have termed the survey “unscientific” and have called for a new survey, the real underlying fact is the fear among the communities over a possible change in the political landscape and power dynamics between castes at the local level.

Political dominance in most places depends on the sway that certain castes hold locally. The numbers that have now been published are likely to allow the other backward classes (OBCs) to challenge the dominance of a community, which the land-owning Vokkaliga or Veerashaiva-Lingayats normally hold.

“Feudal structure at the grassroots can get shaken. If other castes come together, these traditional structures will also come under pressure. Political parties may also start looking at the numbers carefully and distribute the ticket,” said P.R. Ramesh, former Congress MLC. “A big political implication from the published data can be that the parties could try social engineering and justice in the distribution of ticket.”

The 2015 survey by the Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes puts the percentage of the Vokkaliga and Veerashaiva-Lingayat communities, which have so far dominated the State’s politics, of the total population in the State to be 10.29 and 11, respectively, far below their claimed figure of about 13% to 15% and 17% to 22%, respectively.

In the current classification of the backward classes, barring about 24 castes among the about 197 castes/550 sub-castes classified as backward class in the State, the rest have had no political representation so far in the Assembly or Parliament through elections, commission sources said. Though many castes get represented in local bodies, there are still castes that have not had any representation at any level.

“It has been observed that many of the castes do not have adequate population or money power. Parties do not distribute the ticket to leaders from such castes, which results in a lack of representation. Leadership has also not evolved in such communities,” said K.N. Lingappa, a member of H. Kantharaj commission, which conducted the survey.

Acknowledging the fear of power structure altering on the ground, Akhila Bharatha Veerashaiva Mahasabha secretary H.M. Renuka Prasanna said, “We also fear that the same population data could be used for reservation in local bodies. Already, with 50% reservation in local bodies, efforts are made to reserve the Veerashaiva-Lingayat community-dominated wards to other communities and keep the wards where the caste population is not dominant in the general category. This will reduce the chances of candidates from the community winning elections. Our political representation will come down drastically.”