karnataka loksabha election 2024 Why are Karnataka politicians so concerned about caste quotas?

karnataka loksabha election 2024 In 2023 alone, it has dominated a number of elections in the state, including the assembly polls won by Congress.
In fact, this comes ahead of the demand for a caste census by Congress MP Rahul Gandhi and AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge after a survey across Bihar.

“What we are proposing is not just a caste census as popularly called but a socio-economic and educational survey to evaluate and identify communities eligible for welfare schemes,” said Kharge, responding to PM’s criticism. We have already launched many programmes like MGNREGA which cater to the needs of all communities rather than being caste-based.

He (Modi) is communalising it only because he wants votes.karnataka loksabha election 2024 Like this year’s ‘guarantee’, Karnataka has been at the forefront of the caste survey issue. A commission led by Jayaprakash Hegde, currently Udupi Chikmagalur Congress candidate, submitted a report on it. The Siddaramaiah government accepted it without implementing its recommendations yet.

karnataka loksabha election 2024The OBC narrative is part of campaign scripts for Karnataka LS polls.

For Congress, if Ahinda-certified Siddaramaiah is the lead actor then PM Modi is BJP’s face. karnataka loksabha election 2024 Shivaraj Thangadagi, welfare minister for backward classes in Karnataka told TOI that they have accepted report which was first time for any govt; implementing it will benefit underprivileged communities as well as party for fulfilling its promise.

While doing so other communities’ concerns will be taken care.” R Ashoka, opposition leader in Karnataka & Union Home Minister Amit Shah reiterated BJP’s support for OBCs party’s commitment. As we do this other communities’ concerns will be taken into consideration During their campaigns in state Union Home Minister Amit Shah and opposition leader R Ashoka from Karnataka reaffirmed BJP’s support for OBCs with reference to Modi as “sabse bada (biggest) OBC.”

While the Congress party has been concerned about caste matrices across states and Nitish Kumar, who commissioned the Bihar caste survey, had seen the party use the OBC card cautiously, not only has the party put it in its national manifesto but the BJP is also actively wooing these communities.

karnataka loksabha election 2024Nagana Gowda Commission (1960)

karnataka loksabha election 2024 Congress did not tolerate leaders from extremely backward classes. In 1987, Congress refused to recognise Karpoori Thakurji as oppn leader. We recently gave him Bharat Ratna award. These days Congress colleagues are worried about people from lower socioeconomic strata being in govt positions. But I am surprised that they ignore the largest OBC (referring to himself),” Modi said in Parliament on February 5.

After Rahul said that Modi’s Teli caste was not among other backward classes, PM declared himself to be biggest OBC.

The 1931 official caste enumeration by The United Kingdom in India was the first of its kind. The new government found that after setting aside seats for SC/STs in education and jobs many other communities were left behind. This resulted in the Kaka Kalekar commission of 1953 which recommended, among other things, a census enumeration by caste to be conducted during the 1961 Census.

The Mandal Commission’s report in 1980 was significant because it identified 3742 OBC communities and suggested 52% reservations. However, violent protests and legal wrangling prevented Singh’s government from implementing all of its proposed 27% quotas in 1989.

karnataka loksabha election 2024 A major Supreme Court judgement came down on the Indira Sawhney case (1993), which capped total reservations at a maximum of fifty percent but allowed for some exceptions. Also introduced with this ruling was the ‘creamy layer’ concept that puts an income cap (currently Rs eight lakh per annum) on who can avail themselves to reservation benefits.Karnataka Pioneers: In spite resistance from then-divan M Visvesvaraya king Nalvadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar ordered Leslie Miller commission to inquire into underrepresentation of non-Brahmins in 1918.

Nagana Gowda Commission (1960) recommended post-independence 45% job quota and fifty percent education reservation for OBCS except Lingayats but it never got implemented anywhere . This recommendation was superseded by LG Havanur panel of 1975 which increased quantum to thirty two percent each for three newly created categories.