BJP leaders meeting Madhusudan R. Naik, Chairman of the Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes, in Bengaluru on Tuesday.
The BJP on Tuesday urged the Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes, headed by Madhusudan R. Naik, to drop Christian ‘sub castes’ listed in the draft list of castes ahead of the socio-educational survey of the State population.
It also asked how the commission categories those who have had inter-caste marriages or those who do not wish to declare their castes.
“More than 100 castes such as Kumbara Christians, Madiwala Christians, Nekara Christians, Brahmin Christians, Kuruba Christians are part of the list. Are these present in the government’s official list of SC/ST or OBC? These were not in the list prepared by the H. Kantharaj Commission in 2015. What is the reason behind having them in the list?” a memorandum submitted by the BJP to the commission stated.
It said that there are many illegal Bangladeshis staying in the State, and the commission should consult the Centre over dealing with them.
On the enumeration of Muslims, the BJP said: “The H. Kantharaj Commission had identified 19 sub castes in Category 1 and 2B. Instead of conducting the enumeration based on castes, it had allowed Muslims to identify themselves on religious lines under Category 2B. Jayaprakash Hegde (former chairperson of the commission) has said that there were 99 Muslims sub castes. How will they be part of the survey?”
Asking the commission if the fortnight-long survey was sufficient to cover the population, the saffron party pointed out that people will be out on holidays and teachers are yet to be trained.
“The survey for internal reservation to cover 17% of the population took two months and yet remained incomplete,” said the memorandum, expressing doubts on its coverage.
The party also pointed out that members of many castes have raised the issue of their castes being left out in the list that was published.
Published – September 03, 2025 12:43 am IST
