Yet to decide on Karnataka’s recommendation on Lingayat religion: Centre tells HC

Bengaluru, Jun 20: The government of India has told the High Court of Karnataka that the recommendation made in March this year by the State government for granting minority religion status for Lingayat and Veerashaiva-Lingayat communities is being deliberated and no decision had been taken in this regard.

Meanwhile, in a statement submitted to the court on the demand for a separate religion status for Veerashaiva-Lingayat community, the Ministry of Minority Affairs has pointed out that demand for separate religion status for Veerashaiva-Lingayat under the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992, had been made several times in the past.

However, the said requests were examined in consultation with the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) and the Ministry of Law and Justice, and it was observed by the NCM, after considering the socio-historic perspective of the said community, that Veerashaiva-Lingayat is a sect of Hindus and is not an independent religion.

“It was also observed by the national commission that if Veerashaiva-Lingayat is treated as a separate religion by providing minority status, then all Scheduled Castes professing Veerashaiva-Lingayat sect will lose their constitutional status as the Scheduled Castes can only be from Hindu, Buddhist, and Sikh religions.”

The Ministry also submitted to the court a copy of the November 14, 2013 communication from the Office of the Registrar General of India stating that the demand made by the All-India Veerashaiva Mahasabha is apparently not logical and correct, while reiterating the earlier decision that Veerashaiva-Lingayat is a sect of Hindus and not an independent religion.

Noticing that the Union government has not taken any decision, a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Dinesh Maheshwari and Justice Krishna S. Dixit adjourned till August 29 the petitions seeking declaration from the court that the State government and the State Minorities Commission have no powers to examine the demand for a separate religion or minority religion.