Casting a shadow days before the socio educational survey scheduled to be conducted by the Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes, some Ministers in the Siddaramaiah Cabinet are learnt to have brought pressure on the Chief Minister to drop the survey or postpone it, citing inclusion of castes that are not in the notified list of castes. According to sources, as many as 331 castes/ sub castes were cited as examples that are not 'original castes'.

However, the survey is set to commence from September 22 with the commission making preparations even as the Government on Thursday, both at the Cabinet meeting and later during a meeting of group of Ministers, was seized with the matter on 331 castes.

The BJP and other caste groups have raised objections to certain 'new castes' being included in the list, which includes Brahmin Christians, Lingayat Christians, Kuruba Christians and Vokkaliga Christians among others. Objections have also been raised on the increased number of Muslim sub castes and Lingayat sub castes among others.

Sources said that the Cabinet meeting saw animated discussion on the caste survey with Ministers belonging to the politically powerful and land-owing communities of Vokkaliga and Veerashaiva-Lingayat communities opposing the survey itself. The two communities have been traditionally opposed to the survey, and had successfully opposed the previous survey conducted by the H. Kantharaj Commission in 2015, the report of which was submitted by K. Jayaprakash Hegde Commission in 2024.

While the Ministers from the Veerashaiva-Lingayat community raised the issue of confusion around the survey, a few others pointed out that it had become a political tool too. The Chief Minister is learnt to have expressed disappointment over he being branded as pro SC/ST/ OBC and minorities and opposed to other castes. He pointed out at the poor people in all communities and the need to have the survey, sources said.

The post-Cabinet meeting of Ministers, including H.C. Mahadevappa, Santhosh Lad, H.K. Patil, M.B. Patil and Byrathi Suresh, was asked to look into the 331 castes in the list. "People want to identify themselves in a certain manner, which cannot be prevented. Neither the government nor the commission has any role in this. The Chief Minister would be briefed about the matter. The survey will go on as per schedule," one of the Ministers said.

Why certain castes came into list?

Amid controversy over inclusion of 'new castes' in the list, a member of H. Kantharaj Commission K.N. Lingappa clarified that the commission did not imagine the existence of 'new' castes, and the government had no role in the inclusion.

"Members of these communities petitioned before the commission asking for their caste names to be included. They wanted to know their caste population. When they were told that it cannot be included, they threatened to move the court. The commission held a day-long meeting to consider pros and cons and eventually decided to have them in the list," he said. Eventually, he pointed out, the communities got a figure of their population in the survey. "It was the decision of the commission to include them in the list. We also told them the numbers will ultimately be added as part of the larger group and that is how population figures were drawn out."

'New castes': Some Ministers for dropping, putting off socio educational survey