Union minister V Somanna slams the caste census report

TUMKUR: Union Minister of State for Railways V somanna has voiced strong opposition to the Chief Minister Siddaramaiah government’s caste census report.

Speaking to reporters in Tumkur, Somanna said, “I have already told you whatever I wanted to convey. The current report is over ten years old. Don’t become a villain by releasing the report in the state. Give it a year and a half, conduct another survey, and then you will be remembered like Devaraj Urs.”

Somanna further questioned, “Ten years have passed. What happened to the report? Did Kantharaju run away without signing it? We brought in Jayaprakash Hegde, and he too has become a scumbag. Everyone was acting out of selfishness.”

The Union Minister urged the Congress-led state government to scrap the current report and start anew. “Dismiss the report without creating more confusion. Conduct a proper re-survey, take your time, and make the announcement at your own time and take credit for it. But don’t shift blame from one person to another. Releasing the report now, in the midst of confusion, is like putting your hand in a beehive; nothing will happen,” he added.

Kantharaju is the former chairman of the Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes who headed the 2015 socio-economic survey, while Jayaprakash Hegde is the former Member of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly.

On Monday, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah said that a special cabinet meeting has been called on April 17 to discuss the Caste Census report.

Siddaramaiah also told mediapersons that their government will work hard to “build the kind of society that Babasaheb Ambedkar wanted to build.”

Earlier, Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy accused Siddaramaiah of using the caste census as a political gimmick to divert public attention from the Congress government’s failures.

Speaking to mediapersons near Freedom Park, Kumaraswamy said, “There is no meaning to the caste census report that is now being brandished. The Kantharaj Commission’s report was prepared a decade ago. Why wasn’t it implemented all this while? Now, with the public outrage over failed guarantees, rampant corruption, and price hikes reaching a boiling point, the government is trying to mislead people with the drama of the caste census.”

“If you truly want a caste census, then conduct a fresh survey and submit a new report. The last 10 years have brought significant demographic changes,” Kumaraswamy stated. He accused the Congress of exploiting caste for political gain, warning that this divisive agenda could create social unrest.

The Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes has submitted the caste census (socio, economic, and educational survey) report to the Siddaramaiah-led cabinet. If released, the caste census report will be the second by a Congress-ruled state after Telangana. (ANI)