Centre may send Lingayat proposal for detailed study

New Delhi: Close on the heels of Karnataka’s Congress government recommending that religious minority status be given to the sizeable Lingayat and Veerashaiva Lingayat communities in the state, the home ministry clarified on Tuesday that it would examine the issue once the state government sends a formal proposal to the Centre. The issue is politically sensitive as both communities are an important votebank in Karnataka, which will go to the polls later this year.

The state Cabinet approved this proposal on Monday, saying it would soon be sent to the Centre for formal clearance. A senior home ministry official said: “We will examine the proposal in detail once it is received from the state government. So far nothing has come to us.”

Sources said the MHA was likely to send the proposal to the registrar-general and census commissioner for a detailed examination and suggestions as both Lingayat and Veerashaiva Lingayat communities are numerically strong in the state. It will consider whether such groups can be given the status of a “religious minority”.

The proposal was cleared by the state Cabinet after an expert committee constituted by it made a similar recommendation.

The Karnataka State Minorities Commission had set up a seven-member panel, headed by retired high court judge H.N. Nagamohan Das, to examine the issue, and the committee submitted its report on March 2.