BENGALURU: Congress MLA Shamanur Shivashankarappa, who is also president of the Akhila Bharatha Veerashaiva-Lingayat Mahasabha, will on Sunday list out the community’s strategy for the ongoing social and educational survey, widely known as the caste census.
Shivashankarappa, who will address the media at Veerashaiva Lingayat Bhavana at Sadashivanagar in Bengaluru, will be joined by key figures, including Mahasabha general secretary and Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre, Mahasabha state president and former DGP Shankar Bidari, and other office-bearers.
His media address is expected to shed light on the community’s efforts to ensure accurate representation in the census, which could have far-reaching implications for policy and resource allocation in Karnataka.
The community has already announced plans to deploy dedicated teams in every taluk to assist community members with the survey.
Mahasabha Secretary Renuka Prasanna said, “We are waiting for the official survey handbook to prepare and distribute standardised responses through our taluk-wise networks. Our taluk-level structure allows us to mobilise effectively without the need for large volunteer campaigns.”
The census has sparked an intense debate, with some praising it as a tool to address social inequities, while others warning of potential biases in organised community responses.
The move underscores the community’s commitment to secure fair representation this time, amid concerns of a history of undercounting.
At a meeting in Belagavi recently, Lingayat pontiffs and community leaders had said that recognition of Lingayats as a distinct religious identity in the census must start and that they should not be relegated to ‘Hindu’ or ‘Others’ columns.
They insisted that the government provide a separate entry for ‘Lingayat’ under religion. They said that the Karnataka Backward Classes Commission’s caste list does not include nearly 103 sub-castes among Lingayats.
If they are not included, large sections of the community would be erased from official records. They claimed that despite having 181 sub-groups and being one of the largest communities in the state, many sub-castes have not been included.