In a politically loaded move, the Siddaramaiah administration on Thursday recommended to the Union Government that Kurubas, the shepherd caste, should be put under the Scheduled Tribes (ST) category.
Kurubas come under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category. They are seen as a dominant OBC after the Lingayats and Vokkaligas. Siddaramaiah is a Kuruba.
In a letter to his counterpart in the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Principal Secretary (Social Welfare) Major Manivannan P stated that the government had received several representations from the Kuruba community seeking inclusion in the ST list.
In May 2019, the Mysuru-based Karnataka State Tribal Research Institute was asked to do an ethnographic study. A report was submitted in March 2023.
"The Cabinet discussed the report and agreed to forward it to the Government of India. Hence, the report is submitted for taking appropriate action to include the Kuruba community in the Scheduled Tribes list of the state," Manivannan stated.
The move has multiple ramifications.
In Karnataka, OBCs across five categories get 32 per cent reservation. Kurubas come under Category 2A which has a 15 per cent quota. Bringing Kurubas out of this basket would allow Siddaramaiah to rejig the OBC matrix and accommodate other communities who want a bigger share.
The Kuruba community claims that it was identified as one of India’s aboriginal tribes way back in 1868. Apparently, they were STs until 1977 when the LG Havanur Commission named them under ‘Most Backward Classes’. Giving Kurubas the ST tag could help Siddaramaiah consolidate the community further.
"Whether or not the proposal is accepted, it's a significant step, especially for Siddaramaiah whose clout among his fellow caste members would grow exponentially," retired High Court Justice Nagamohan Das, who headed a commission that recommended hiking SC/ST reservation, told DH.
If Kurubas come under the ST list, they can get higher political representation alongside a bigger share in the quota pie. Karnataka has already hiked ST quota from 3 per cent to 7 per cent.
This is where another problem could crop up. At present, most of the ST benefits go to the Valmiki or Nayaka community. "Kurubas getting the ST tag will certainly antagonise the Nayaka community," one ST leader said, adding that the share of Nayakas could be halved.
Another Congress leader opined that Siddaramaiah could have waited until after the Lok Sabha polls.
Former minister KS Eshwarappa, the BJP's Kuruba face, welcomed the recommendation and said he would urge the union government to accept it. When the BJP was in power, Eshwarappa had led a campaign for Kurubas to get the ST tag. Then, Siddaramaiah kept away claiming that it was an RSS ploy to divide the community.