The Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes has announced its decision to hide 33 Christian sub-castes from the mobile application used by enumerators for the upcoming socio-educational survey. This move comes after considerable political uproar ignited by the ‘inclusion of new castes’ within the Christian sub-caste classification.
During a press briefing, K.A. Dayanand, the Commission’s member-secretary, explained that out of 38 Christian groups initially listed, five would be retained, while the remaining 33 would be concealed due to the escalating controversy. He also noted that seven sub-castes had already been removed prior to the list’s publication.
The Commission had initially released a list of 1,413 castes, which later grew to 1,561 after 148 new entries were added based on various petitions. This count did not include the 101 Scheduled Castes and 50 Scheduled Tribes already recognized. The inclusion of certain Christian sub-castes, such as Lingayat Christian, Kuruba Christian, Brahmana Christian, and Vokkaliga Christian, among others, fueled widespread debate and disagreement.
Mr. Dayanand clarified that the official caste roster included 887 groups for Backward Classes, 101 for Scheduled Castes, and 50 for Scheduled Tribes. He acknowledged that additional castes might exist, emphasizing that the Commission’s role is not to validate castes. He stated, “It is entirely voluntary for individuals to identify and enumerate under any caste name through self-declaration. These newly listed castes emerged from how people identified themselves during the 2015 survey, which was led by the H. Kantharaj Commission.”
Regarding the implications for reservation benefits, Mr. Dayanand pointed out that while the law acknowledges a change in religion post-conversion, caste identity itself remains unaltered. He added, “Any provisions for reservation and associated benefits are dispensed strictly according to government policy.”
The controversy surrounding Christian sub-castes quickly gained political momentum, with the BJP alleging that the government was attempting to create divisions within Hindu communities. During a recent Cabinet meeting, several ministers passionately spoke out against the inclusion, urging Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to either delay or halt the entire survey.
Madhusudan Naik, the Commission’s chairperson, explained that the decision to mask the castes was made because their inclusion was deemed unnecessary. He remarked, “This caused unwelcome confusion. The caste list was compiled purely for the Commission’s internal convenience and holds no public validity, relevance, or legal standing. Given its internal purpose, we chose to mask these entries to avoid further misunderstanding.”
Naik further clarified that the Commission did not originate this caste list but instead adapted it from the one previously prepared by the H. Kantharaj Commission. He stated, “We haven’t removed any castes; we’ve simply hidden them from the dropdown menus. The caste names will still exist within our system, but enumerators will not actively suggest them to households.”
Religion Column Deemed Irrelevant for Survey Analysis
Madhusudan Naik, Chairman of the Backward Classes Commission, asserted that the religion column in the enumeration process holds no analytical value, as religion falls outside the Commission’s defined scope.
“Our evaluations will not be based on religious affiliations; instead, information is being collected under a broader categorical framework,” he explained.
This statement followed questions regarding efforts by Veerashiava-Lingayat groups to encourage their community members to identify as ‘others’ within the religion category.
“While communities are free to advise their members to self-identify in ways that assert their religious identity, such entries will not hold significance in our analysis,” Naik concluded. “Our primary objective is to conduct an analysis rooted in socio-economic, educational, and political backwardness.”