Namma Metro to 'Basava Metro': Is Lingayat outreach behind CM Siddaramaiah's proposal?

Siddaramaiah's statement comes in the backdrop of Opposition BJP's charge of Congress government of trying to 'divide' the Veerashaiva-Lingayat community through the Social and Educational Survey

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's announcement that he will put forward a proposal before the Centre to rename the Bengaluru metro rail project after the 12th-century social reformer Basavanna is being seen as yet another attempt by the Congress to woo the dominant Lingayat community, considered a traditional vote bank of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

This comes at a time when the Opposition BJP has accused the Congress government of trying to "divide" the Veerashaiva-Lingayat community through the ongoing Social and Educational Survey. In the run-up to the launch of the survey, the State Cabinet, too, had seen sharp divisions, with some Ministers calling for a postponement due to objections to certain caste names and the religion status of Lingayats.

At the valedictory ceremony of the 'Basava Culture Campaign-2025' on Sunday, the Chief Minister said, "If this [metro project] were entirely a State government project, I would have announced it as 'Basava Metro' today itself."

Metro project is by both the State and Central government. Our (State) share may be more at 87 per cent, 13 per cent by the Centre, but still, without Central government's approval, we cannot do anything. I will place this proposal before the Central government," he said.

Siddaramaiah said, "Basavanna preached coexistence and tolerance throughout his life. I too will follow this." No one is superior because of caste. Similarly, talent and knowledge are not the property of any one caste, he said.

Sunday's programme was organised to mark the anniversary of Basaveshwara being named Karnataka's cultural leader. In January 2024, ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the Karnataka Cabinet decided to declare the social reformer and Lingayat faith founder the cultural leader of the State.

This was the first such declaration in Karnataka and was on the lines of Maharashtra having made Chhatrapati Shivaji its icon. The Cabinet decision was in line with the demand of some prominent Lingayat seers.

Siddaramaiah had then said Basavanna was his "ideological guru" and recalled that it was on Basava Jayanti that he first took oath as Chief Minister in 2013. "It was not a coincidence; it was deliberate," he had said.

Later, in February 2024, Siddaramaiah directed all government offices to display Basaveshwara's portrait with the slogan 'Vishwa Guru Basavanna, our cultural leader'.

Sunday's event also saw a renewed call for a separate religion status for Lingayats. Lingayat seers and leaders passed a five-point resolution on creating awareness about the Lingayat religion.

In 2018, the then government headed by Siddaramaiah, just ahead of the Assembly elections, and recommended to the Centre that 'religious minority' tag be granted to the dominant Lingayat and Veerashaiva-Lingayat community. This came amid stiff opposition by the Akhila Bharata Veerashaiva Mahasabha and Veerashaiva seers. However, the Union government later rejected the Karnataka government's recommendation.

This decision was seen as one of the reasons why the Congress failed to retain power in the 2018 elections.