Bhovis stage protest against Sadashiva Commission report

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: The Bhovi community, traditional well-diggers, on Tuesday staged a protest against the ruling BJP government in Karnataka for forwarding the Sadashiva Commission report to the Central government that they alleged, sought to reduce their share of reservation under the SC category. Implementing the Sadashiva Commission report had been one of the promises made by the BJP in its manifesto.

The demonstrators took out a march from Majestic Railway Station to Freedom Park, decrying the Bommai government in the State for not consulting them and other stakeholders in the matter. Bhovis, whose “traditional occupation” has been that of digging wells, are classified as Scheduled Caste.

The Sadashiva Commission was constituted in 2005 by then Congress and JD(S) coalition government. The report had recommended that there be a sub-classification among the SCs so as to give them reservation that is proportionate to their share in the state’s population. There are 101 “untouchable” castes in the SC list in Karnataka.

However, the list prepared by the commission contains touchable castes such as Bhovis and Lambanis because of their economic marginalisation, a vestige of the old princely state of Mysuru. These touchable castes account for over a fifth of the SC population of Karnataka.