Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday said he has taken “no stand” on the Lingayat community’s demand for separate religion status, even as the opposition BJP accused the ruling Congress of trying to divide Hindus for political gain.
The chief minister’s clarification came a day after the Basava Culture Campaign-2025, organised by the Lingayat Matadeeshara Okkoota (Federation of Lingayat Seers), passed a resolution to raise awareness about the need for separate religious recognition for Lingayats.
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“I have no stand. The stand of the people is my stand,” Siddaramaiah told reporters in Koppal. “We will write what they (Lingayat community members) say their religion is, during the ongoing caste survey.”
When asked why the issue had resurfaced, he said, “The issue has always remained there. Some Virakta math swamijis are demanding for it.”
{{/usCountry}}When asked why the issue had resurfaced, he said, “The issue has always remained there. Some Virakta math swamijis are demanding for it.”
{{/usCountry}}Karnataka BJP president BY Vijayendra responded sharply, alleging that “some forces” were attempting to divide Hindus. “We need to protect the Hindu religion amid attempts to divide it. The people know who is behind this,” he said, adding that similar efforts had failed in the past and “will not succeed in the future.”
The controversy has once again spotlighted divisions within the Veerashaiva-Lingayat community. While both groups trace their origins to the 12th-century reformer Basaveshwara, tensions have persisted over whether they constitute a single religious identity or distinct groups.
Notably, Veerashaiva seers and members of the Akhila Bharata Veerashaiva Mahasabha, the community’s apex body, were reportedly excluded from Sunday’s event attended by Siddaramaiah and Lingayat ministers MB Patil, Sharan Prakash Patil, and Laxmi Hebbalkar.
Minister Eshwar Khandre, who is also part of the Veerashaiva Mahasabha, told reporters that “Lingayats and Veerashaivas are the same,” pointing out that revered leaders such as the late Shivakumara Swamiji had affirmed their shared identity. He reiterated that the Mahasabha would continue to seek separate religion status for Veerashaiva-Lingayats, akin to Buddhists, Sikhs, and Jains.
However, senior Congress minister MB Patil maintained that Lingayats are a distinct faith. “We are Indians first. Geographically, we are all Hindus. But Lingayats are a religion like other Indic religions, Buddhists, Jains, and Sikhs,” he said.
Responding to criticism that the Mahasabha was excluded from Sunday’s event, Patil said the organisers had invited only those “who are straight in favour of Basavanna and his philosophy,” and not those with a “dual stand.” He added that Veerashaivas “have now come halfway” by supporting the separate religion cause.
The debate over separate religion status for Lingayats has long been politically charged. In 2018, the then Siddaramaiah-led Congress government’s recommendation to the Centre for granting religious minority status to Lingayats was widely seen as a major factor behind the party’s poor performance in Lingayat-dominated constituencies.
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