BJP State President B Y Vijayendra.
Credit: DH Photos
Bengaluru: The state BJP is facing a political dilemma following the All India Veerashaiva Mahasabha’s latest stand on the upcoming caste census.
The Mahasabha has urged its members to identify as belonging to ‘Veerashaiva-Lingayat’ religion, not as Hindus — placing the BJP in a tight spot, as the party’s Hindutva ideology hinges on Hindu unity, while the Mahasabha commands significant influence over the Lingayat community, a crucial support base for the saffron party.
Top BJP leaders from the Veerashaiva-Lingayat community held an urgent meeting here on Tuesday to discuss the issue.
The leaders included B S Yediyurappa, Union Minister V Somanna, former chief ministers and sitting MPs Jagadish Shettar and Basavaraj Bommai, former MPs G M Siddeshwara and Vijaya Sankeshwar, senior leader Prabhakar Kore and Aravind Bellad, deputy leader of the Opposition in the Assembly.
Addressing reporters after the meeting, BJP state president B Y Vijayendra launched a scathing attack on the Congress government and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, accusing them of plotting to divide Hindus through caste survey.
Vijayendra said though there was no legal provision for a state to conduct caste census, the Congress government was proceeding with a fresh one.
He said the survey, conducted in the name of socio-economic exercise, was politically motivated and aimed at breaking Hindu unity.
He pointed to the inclusion of identifiers like Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Buddhist, Sikh, Parsi, Atheist and Others in the survey as evidence of the government’s intent.
He accused Siddaramaiah of repeating his earlier attempt to divide the Veerashaiva-Lingayat community during his first tenure as
CM — a move that, according to Vijayendra, cost him politically.
When asked if BJP leaders want the word ‘Hindu’ to be included in the religion column, he said the party had given its senior leaders the responsibility to hold talks with the Veerashaiva Mahasabha in this regard.
“They have also decided to speak with religious leaders from Virakta Mutts and Pancha Peethas to come to a common decision on how to mention religion, caste and sub-caste in the survey — keeping in mind what’s best for the country, state and community,” he said.
He acknowledged the confusion existing among pontiffs and said the party would work to educate them. “We will not allow Veerashaiva-Lingayats to be divided into groups,” Vijayendra said.
‘Only Centre can conduct’
Bommai questioned the survey’s legality, stating that under the Census Act, only the Centre could conduct such an exercise.
He accused the Congress of adding non-existing communities for political benefit and questioned why the
Kantharaju Commission report was never officially released.
When asked clearly whether BJP leaders want ‘Hindu’ to be mentioned in the religion column by Lingayats, the former CM didn’t give a clear answer, but said the BJP’s main focus was to keep the community united.