Bengaluru- Slamming the caste census by the Karnataka government that commenced from Monday as a farce, the BJP has urged the state government to drop Christian tags for Hindu castes. Speaking at a press conference at the BJP state office, Jagannath Bhavan, in Bengaluru, the Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council, Chalavadi Narayanaswamy stated on Monday, “Does the government intend to promote a particular religion? Who inspired you to add dozens of categories such as Adi Andhra Christian, Adi Karnataka Christian, Adi Dravida Christian in this survey?”

He demanded that the Christian tags attached to caste names must not be included in the survey. He said that the state government has no authority to conduct a caste census. “You have announced it as a socio-economic survey. But in the process, you have added Christian tags to Scheduled Caste groups like Adi Andhra, Adi Karnataka, Adi Dravida, Banjara, Budaga Jangam, Holeya, and so on. Is the intent behind this to make them all Christians?” he asked. He called the survey by the Karnataka government a farce. “You need not ask in the survey which caste someone belongs to or what religion they follow; it is not required for official records. Yet, adding names like Kuruba Christian, Vokkaliga Christian is illegal. If this is done, caste conflicts will continue endlessly,” he warned.

“If the government’s intention is to ensure no community in the state lives in peace, then let people judge what kind of report this Backward Classes Commission will produce,” he remarked. “Was this survey planned under Trump’s guidance? Did Sonia Gandhi direct you to do this? Did common people submit applications or take to the streets demanding the addition of Christian tags?” Narayanaswamy asked sarcastically. “People have already taken to the streets against this. Except for the Chief Minister, the entire Congress cabinet is opposed to it. The BJP leadership is against it. The JD(S) is against it. Religious leaders, community elders, all are opposing you,” he pointed out.

He alleged that amid widespread confusion, the government has pushed forward with a caste survey through the Backward Classes Commission starting today. “This is not new. The Kantharaju Commission had already conducted a survey. The government did not accept it. Where did that report go? They say it was lost—was it gold? This government has failed to even trace a stolen report,” he ridiculed. “The first commission cost about Rs 180 crore. For the Jayaprakash Hegde Commission report, you are silent about the expenditure,” he said. “If the Kantharaju report had been accepted, it would have respected people’s sentiments,” he argued. “Now you are spending Rs 425 crore again. Is this the Congress treasury? Are you bringing the money from your homes?” he asked. “Who gave you the authority to squander public money at will?” he demanded.

“The state’s development is zero. You cannot respond to people’s hardships. You cannot even fill potholes in cities. Industrialists are writing letters and tweeting about leaving the state. To divert people’s attention, you are creating confusion with this survey,” he charged. “You claim you will complete the survey of seven crore people in 15 days. By your own admission, the Scheduled Castes number 1.07 crore. For that alone, you had to postpone the survey 3–4 times and took nearly two-and-a-half months, and yet you covered only 65 per cent,” he said. “If you now claim you will finish the entire state in just 15 days, it must be through satellite-based surveys only,” he ridiculed. F

ormer Union Minister A. Narayanaswamy, BJP state vice-president N. Mahesh, BJP state spokesperson H. Venkatesh Dodderi, retired IAS officer and BJP leader Anil Kumar, and state SC Morcha office secretary Prashant Kumar were present. (IANS)