The Banjara community has taken to the streets in Karnataka to protest against the state government's recent decision to introduce internal reservation for the sub-castes in the Scheduled Castes (SC) category.
BJP veteran and former Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa's office and home at Shikaripura in Shivamogga came under attack as protesters pelted stones against the reservation order. Despite Yediyurappa's assurance to solve the issue, the protests continue in Shikaripura town.
The Banjara community is demanding a rollback of the decision taken by the Basavaraj Bommai-led government in the state, ahead of Assembly polls.
So what sparked the stir? The Banjara community has been a significant beneficiary of the SC reservations in the state. The Banjara community's percentage of reservations, however, is in danger of declining in light of the state government's most recent announcement.
In the past, Karnataka offered a 15% reservation to SCs. However, the BJP government in the state upped the reservation by 2% to 17%. However, a decision was made to split the SC reservation internally during the same Cabinet meeting. Currently, 6% of the reservation is allocated to SC Left, 5.5% to SC Right, 4.5% to SC Touchables, and 1% to other SC communities.
The SC Touchables category includes the Banjara community as well as the Govi, Korma, and Korchas communities. With the new internal quota, the Banjara community feels that they have been unfairly treated.
Under the former reservation system, the Banjara community got a bigger stake, up to 10%. However, with the internal division, it has been fixed at 4.5%, which they feel is "less and unscientific".
The community members are accusing the BJP government of executing the Sadashiva committee report without even discussing it in any public forum.
The Banjara community has been calling for a reversal of the decision at protests that have been taking place in the state since Friday. In various regions of the state, the protests have caused disruptions to daily life due to road closures and issues with public transportation. The Banjara community has warned that the protests will continue until their demands are met.
After the raging protests, Yediyurappa convened a press meeting on Monday where he said he would visit Shikaripura and speak to the people of the Banjara community. Chief Minister Bommai also clarified that the government implemented the Cabinet sub-committee recommendation and not the Sadashiva Commission recommendations.
