Will speak on caste census after April 17 cabinet discussion: Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah

Siddaramaiah also slammed the BJP for allegedly attempting to appropriate national icons.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, on Monday, said he would comment on the caste census report only after it is deliberated upon in the special cabinet meeting scheduled for April 17.

Speaking to reporters after paying tribute to BR Ambedkar on his 134th birth anniversary, Siddaramaiah said, “We have convened a cabinet meeting on April 17 to discuss this lone subject. There we will discuss. After the discussion, I will speak on the topic.”

The Karnataka cabinet had accepted the Socio-Economic and Educational Survey — popularly referred to as the 'caste census' — on April 11. The comprehensive survey was initiated during Siddaramaiah’s previous tenure as Chief Minister, with the State Backward Classes Commission, led then by H Kantharaju, entrusted with the task. The data collection was completed in 2018, and the report was finalised in February 2024 under the commission’s current chairperson, K Jayaprakash Hegde.

Responding to the BJP’s accusation that the Congress was responsible for B R Ambedkar’s defeat in a past Lok Sabha election, Siddaramaiah dismissed the claim as baseless. Citing a letter written by Ambedkar himself, the Chief Minister said, “Ambedkar had clearly stated that Hindutva ideologue Vinayak Damodar Savarkar and Communist leader Sripad Amrut Dange were responsible for his defeat.”

Siddaramaiah also slammed the BJP for allegedly attempting to appropriate national icons.

“Those who opposed Ambedkar and assassinated Mahatma Gandhi are now trying to own them,” he said. “Those ‘Manuvadis’ who opposed the Indian Constitution are trying to lay claim to Ambedkar, Mahatma Gandhi, and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.”