The shaded grand courtyard of the Sree Siddaganga Math (monastery) in Tumkur, one of the oldest and most influential shrines of the Shiva-focused Lingayat sect, is an unlikely place for a political conversation.
Nestled amid rocky hillocks that house several sacred caves, the monastery was founded in the 15th century as a Sharana (Shiva devotee) abode for spreading the teachings of the twelfth-century Lingayat statesman-saint-social reformer Basavanna. Trying to understand the famed influence of Lingayat voters in Karnataka politics, I once asked its president, Sri Sri Siddalinga Mahaswamigalu, about how his institution viewed politics.
While carefully staying away from any kind of political statement about either the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) or Congress, the swami said something that has stayed with me ever since.
“Elections are for voting by each and every one, but wherever you go, religion and caste are ridden with politics," the 55-year-old monk said. “Without caste and religion, there is no politics in India. That is bad, but we hope that one day all will come out without religion and caste. But today, we are seeing everyone running behind caste and religion.”
Five years ago, when we had this conversation at the monastery, it was at the epicentre of a heated political exchange, because the Congress’s then chief minister Siddaramaiah had tried to reduce the BJP’s dominance among Lingayat voters by recommending minority status for the sect. While many Lingayats also call themselves Veerashaivas, the then Congress government also simultaneously recognised Veerashaiva-Lingayats as a separate Lingayat subsect, opening up another contentious religious argument. It proved to be a lightning rod among Lingayat voters. So much so that when the BJP emerged as the single largest party in the polls in 2018, its lead was powered by wins in a majority of the 70 assembly seats where Lingayat voters were dominant (over 15 per cent of the voters).
Today, five years later, we are seeing another BJP vs Congress political fight over the Lingayat vote in Karnataka.
While the BJP’s greatest state stalwart, BS Yediyurappa, remains Karnataka’s tallest Lingayat leader and is campaigning heavily in the state, others like its former chief minister Jagadish Shettar and former deputy chief minister Laxman Savadi have defected to the Congress.
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